CIHM 

Microflcha 

Series 

(Monographs) 


ICMH 

Collectioii  de 

microfiches 

(monographles) 


[1 


CwMdianlnstitiitotorHMorteilMhiiiiai  hmlinm 


TechrUcai  and  Bibliographic  Notts  /  Notes  techniquas  at  blt>tiographiques 


Th«  Inttitutt  has  attempttd  to  obtain  th«  bast  original 
copy  avMia  for  flMng.  Fartuias  ol  this  copy  which 
nwy  ba  bWiographlcally  unique.  v»*»ich  may  a«ar  any  of 
tha  imagas  in  tha  raproduction.  or  which  may 
tignifieafiliy  ehangt  9m  usual  nwUiotf  of-ffimlng  art 


12  Oolouiadeowt/ 

Oouvailura  andommagia 

□ Covwsfastored  and/or  laminated/ 
Couvaitura  lasiauiia  alto  palicuMa 

CoMflMa  missing /U  ttia  da  eouvartura  manqtia 
Coloured  maps  /  Cartes  gtographiques  an  coulsur 

□ Coloured  ink  (i.e.  other  than  blue  or  black)  /* 
Encre  de  couleur  (i-e.  autre  que  bleua  ou  noira) 

j — j  Cotoured  plates  and/or  illustrations/ 


Planches  et/ou  illustrations  en  ooiilaur 

Bound  with  other  material  / 
Relii  avec  d'autres  documwls 

Only  editton  available  / 
Seule  Edition  disponibia 


□ 
□ 

0 Tight  binding  may  causa  shadows  or  distortion  along 
interior  margin  /  U  lalufa  aaffit  paUl  eauiar  tfa 


□ 


I'ombre  ou  da  la  dManiMi  la  ioog  tfa  la  maiga 
intiriaura. 

Blank  leaves  added  during  restorations  may  appear 
wHMnihataxt  Whenever  possible,  these  have  bean 
omMedfromflming  /  laapaulquaeaftalnaapagaa 
blanches  ajouties  tors  d'une  restauration 
apparatoant  dans  la  texla.  male,  iorsqua  cela  4Uit 
pMSIMa.  eaa  pages  nPoni  paa  iM  fibniat. 


L'Institut  a  mietofflm*  la  maMaur  axamplairt  qU*l  lul  a 
M  possible  de  se  procurer.  Les  details  de  cet  exem- 
plaira  qui  sont  peut4lrs  unkjuaa  du  point  da  vua  bibfi- 
ographique,  qui  peuvanl  modMaf  una  bnaga  lapioAaa^ 
ou  qui  peuvent  exiger  une  modification  dans  la  mitho* 
de  normala  da  filmaga  sont  indiquAs  d-dassous. 


□ 

Pages  damaged  /  Pagaa  endommag4es 

□ Pages  restored  and/or  laminated/ 
Pages  rastaurtfaa  aMw  paMeuMaa 

0 Pages  discoloured,  stained  o  -      .  / 
Pagaa  d<coiw«aa.tachalias  ou * 

I    [  Pagaa  daUched/ Pagaa  d4tach£?i 

ShowllwQugh/Tnnapafanca 

□ QuaMy  of  print  vailaa/ 
Quaai  biigaia  da  nmpraaaion 

□ Inekidaa  aupplementary  material  / 
Comppand  du  malMal  auppMmantaba 

□ Pagaa  wholly  or  partially  obscured  by  errata  slips, 
tissues,  etc.,  have  been  refilmed  to  ensure  the  best 
possible  image  /  Les  pages  totalement  ou 
partiaHamant  obscurcies  par  un  feuillet  d'errata,  une 
p^e,  etc.,  ont  M  film^es  k  nouveau  da  fagon  k 
oManIr  la  meSieure  image  possible. 

Opposing  pages  with  varying  colouration  or 
discolourattons  are  filmed  twice  to  ensure  the  best 
possible  image  /  Les  pages  s'opposant  ayant  des 
cotorattons  variabiea  ou  dea  d<cok)rationa  sont 
filmies  deux  fois  afin  d'oblanir  ia  maiReure  imagt 


□ 


yAddhkjnal comments/  P*''  Wdden  by  label. 

S«wiantalf»aauppiiwanla>aaPn«  partia  da  la  cottvartura  eat  caehia  par  una  itiquette. 


Thit  him  it  f Hmatf  st  tt>«  n 


lOx 


14x 


Itx 


22x  26x   30x  

I  I  I  I   I  I  I  I   I   I   I  I 

9A»  24x  2tx  32X 


12x 


Ifx 


24x 


to  tiM 


IfMvMlly  •!  TcMMM  Ukwy  URtanlty  •!  T( 


Th«  ImagM  appearing  hara  ara  tha  baat  quality 
poatlbia  conaMaring  tha  condition  and  laglbUity 
of  tha  original  copy  and  in  kaapinf  wMi  tfM 


Lm  imagas  auh/antaa  ont  M  rsproduitac  avac  ia 
piua  grand  aoin,  compta  tanu  da  la  condition  at 
da  ia  nattati  da  I'axamplaira  Wmt,  «t  m 
ooitfonwmiwelaacow^tioiia<Mowmi#p 


Original  copiaa  bi  printad  paper  covara  ara  fHmad 

^^^^^^■^^  ^^^^^  ^^^a^A  A^M^^W  ^^^^  ^u^^^K^ 

Doginning  wnn  ma  iiviit  oovw  am  anomg  vn 
tha  last  paga  with  a  printad  or  Hhiatratad  imprw* 
aion,  or  tha  bacit  covar  whan  appropriate.  AH 
other  original  copies  are  filmed  beginning  on  the 
first  page  with  a  printad  or  iUuetratad  impraa- 
aiofi#  and  aiMlli^  oil  Ifco  teM  pofip  imII^  o  pviiittMl 
Of  Muatrotod  inipfoorion* 


Lea  examplakoa  originaiM  dont  hi  couvortwo  on 

par  la  iireniler  plet  et  en  tenninant  soit  par  la 
darniAre  paga  qui  comporte  une  empreinte 
d'Impretsion  ou  d'iilustretion.  soit  par  la  second 

originiUM"  **  "wiJlS'**  a«oinplolraa 
promMre  paga  qui  compono  WW  owpwlnta 
d'impresaion  ou  d'lHustoation  oi  on  Wvminant  par 
ia  derni*re  page  Wil  oompoflo  WW  WRo 
empreinte. 


The  last  recorded  frame  on  each  microfiche 
shall  contain  the  symbol  — ^  (meaning  "CON> 
TINUEO").  or  the  symbol  ▼  Cwoonini  "ViDI. 
MfMohawMr  aanliaa. 


Un  des  symboies  suh/ants  apparaltre  sur  la 
damlAre  imege  de  chaqu*>  microfiche,  aakm  la 
caa:  le  symbole  — ►  signif ie  "A  •INVIir'.  to 
symbole  y  signifie  "HN". 


IMaps.  plates,  charts,  etc.,  may  be  filmed  at 
diffaient  reduction  ratioa.  Thoaa  too  largo  to  bo 
amireiy  ineiiKMV  m  ona  eKpoauiw  ara  mtnav 
beginning  in  the  upper  left  hand  corner,  left  to 
right  and  top  to  bottom,  as  many  frames  as 
required.  Tlw  toMOW>»g  dtapamo  IMMOtfOW  the 
method: 


Las  cartas,  planchea,  tableaux,  etc.,  powwnt  tMo 
fUm4e  i  doe  taux  da  vMuctlon  diff 4ronW. 
Loio^uo  to  doownont  oot  trop  grand  pow  Mra 
raproduit  en  un  seui  ciich*.  il  est  film4  i  partir 
de  I'angle  supArieur  geuche.  ds  gauche  k  droite, 
et  de  haut  an  bes.  en  prenent  to  nombre 
d'imogaa  nicoaaolro.  Lee  dtogromreoo  autoanta 


1 

2 

3 

4 

5 

6 

MKatooorv  anouinoN  mr  cnmh 

(ANSI  and  SO  TIST  CHART  N*.  2) 


Some  Features  of  the  Faith 


A  POPULAR  mscussKm 

OF  CERTAIN  CARDINAL  POINTS 
OP  GHMSIIAN  DOCTRINE 


BT 


JOHIf  ARTHUR  SHAW,  M.A. 


AttkHt  tf  "Some  Pluues  of  Clerical  life."  **n»  Ttim  ta  th« 


"Ood  bf  merciful  unto  «»,  and  bUi»  u»:  and 
thew  M  the  light  of  Bit  eount*nance.  and  b«  mer- 
e{/ia  unto  ut: 

"That  TKyaway  may  bf  knotm  upon  farth; 
ny  taring  health  amontj  all  nations. 

"Let  the  people  praise  Thee,  O  God;  yea,  let 
Mthtp*9pUprii»$  TkM." 


14B  YOVMG  CHVUCMMAN  CO. 

1  »oa 


-1 


Nil 


k 


To  th«  Memory 

Y  DEAR  MOTHER. 

This  Book  la 
Affectionately  Dedicated 


CONTENTS. 


CHAPTER  I. 

God— The  Theistic  position  from  the  Church's  sUnd- 
ptdnt.  No  proof  offered— A  glance  at  the  situation— Few 
coo  verts  by  proof— Christian  Thdam  cannot  be  put  on  paper 
— (2)  Language  cannot  fully  embody  religion,  e.g.,  try  to 
describe  "Father"— A  child  may  know  it;  a  sags  may  eoow 
short  of  it— The  Church's  way  alone  adequate. 

CHAPTER  II. 

CuATloif— (3)    Many   theories,    none  satisfying— 

Authority  needed— Revelation  possesses  this— The  character 
of  its  assertic.  i — Man's  position  in  creation — (4)  His  like- 
ness and  unlikeness  to  other  creatures— His  equipment  for 
rulership— The  image  of  God— His  freedom,  of  the  highest 
kind,  yet  not  absolute— (5)  Conditioned  but  not  curtailed 
—A  God  to  the  world  under  him,  a  smi  to  God— Adam  not 
perfect,  but  perfectly  equipped— (6)  Innocence  not  perfec- 
tion—Our Lord's  character  not  merely  innocent — Adam's 

ail  entrance  on  a  career— Elements  of  man's  nature  (7) 

Two  parts  or  three?  Soul  and  spirit  thought  to  be  distinct 
— Unsatisfactoriness  of  tripartite  division— More  platonic 
than  biblical— "In  whom  my  soul  is  well  pleased"— Man's 
soul  not  a  third  nature  between  body  and  spirit — The 
preSxistence  of  souls— (8)  Idea  born  in  Eastr-Condemned 

by  first  Council  of  Constantinople— The  breath  of  life  

Creation  of  the  soul — Our  Lord's  resurrection — Indissol- 
ubleness  of  body  and  soul — A  kindred  subject — (9)  Is  the 
soul  transmitted?  Subject  anciently  not  discussed  on  its 
merits— Tertullian's    and    Augustine's  treatment— Tra- 


4 


HOM£  FKATrKE8  UK  TUX  FAITH. 


ducianism  and  Creationimn — OnoMidednenA  of  both  views — 
(10)  Danger  of  half  tiutha— Unite  the  view*— Tradudan- 
ina  and  Deism — Great  names  on  side  of  Tradududna 
— Creationiiim  always  foremoat  in  esteom — (11)  ReaHons 
pro  and  con — Soul  not  uninfluenced  by  transmitted  body — 
Effaet  of  Adam's  act— The  Church's  doctrine  of  Origimil 
Sin,  anticipated— (12)  Not  impaired  bjr  CreatioBism — 
Man's  raiaon  d'etre  (13). 

CHAPTER  III. 

The  Fall — (14)  Tlw  orij;in  of  original  evil — Silence 
of  Holy  Scripture  checks  curiosity — The  Bible  not  a  heap 
of  miscellaneous  knowledge — Its  design  to  remedy,  not  to 
explain  evil — Hopeless  guewsox  at  origin  of  evil — Existence 
of  evil,  our  true  starting  point — Humanity  in  rudimentary 
state — (16)  The  acorn  not  the  oak — The  balanced  nature — 
Attribute  of  frei>  wil' — Man  may  move  towards  or  from  his 
true  destiny  -Two  us])octH  of  nian'i*  poHition,  two  outlooks — 
On  one  hand  all  is  Qod — Man  a  mote  in  the  sunHhine — On 
the  other,  man  himself  is  supreme — ( 16)  Everything  inferior 
to  him — Man's  way  lies  between  these  two  opposites — De- 
pendence in  spiritual  world,  means  supremacy  in  material 
world — ^The  dual  outloidc  viewed  without  sin — Contemplation 
not  enough  to  develop  man's  nature — Temptation  must  sea- 
son—  The  serpent  (17)  — Insinuation  —  Overstatement  — 
Ruler  ra.  ruled— Hie  second  Adam's  Temptation — ^Adam 
to  subdue  the  world,  is  sulxlued  by  the  world — Eve  ovoi- 
powered  by  Satan— (18)  Facts  of  the  fall  symbolized— The 
desirable  presented  in  independence  of  Ood — Bodily  hunger 
not  impelling  force  to  Adam's  sin — (19  Supreme  rulership 
— ^Figure  of  eating — Godward  prospect  abandoned  for  an 
unattested  hope,  a  lie — Man  seduced  through  medium  of  his 
affection — Yet  willingly  seduced — (20)  Significance  of  our 
Lord's  ever  present  compassion  for  our  race — Weeping  over 
Jerusalem — Absence  of  questions  to  alBicted — ^Milton's  poetic 
inter  tation — This  feature  of  man's  case  a  stimulant  to 
ho;      riow  we  are  individually  affected — (21)  The  popular 


SOMK  im*'  JUS  OF  THK  VAITH. 


coMsption — Not  MtUfactory  but  ewmnt— Di<><>redit«bl« 
MUMt  of  thit  currency— The  difficulty  atAted-  -(22)  Not 
of  the  Church*!  making — The  oppoaite  error — Unitarianiitni 
— The  hereay  condemne«l  in  fifth  wiitury — iVlagianittm — 
(23)  Pelkgius  el  ol  tried— Settlement  left  to  Biahop  of 
Rome — lanoeent  I.  eondemna  PelagiuM — Pope  Zoeimua  can- 
cela  Innocent'a  finding — I'elagiuM  ubaolvetl  —  Accuaera 
branded  "vagabonda"— Auguatine'a  attitude  to  Pelagiua  iui< 
ekanged  by  tbia — Hia  charge  ai{«inat  Roman  r'»rgy — Em- 
peror  now  takes  case  in  hand-  Decides  agaii  '•elufjiuH, 
tbia  law  iaaued  April  30,  4 1»— council  of  Can  \e  rivet* 
Emperor'a  d«eiafc»— Pelagiua  baniahad  from  Home— Man- 
ning and  rnfallibility— (24)  The  Hoiy  Spirit  alone  infal- 
lible—Augustine's  process  c'  reasmilr;,  —  Mode  of  trans- 
miaaton — OBoatieiam — ^Artak.''  (i.— Neatoriffiiiam,  all  kindred 
— As  a'  monasticisiii  and  uomnn  theoloj^y — (  25)  Auj^i'^t- 
ine  an  irreclaimable  Maniehean — The  Church's  doctrine  of 
the  m«tt«r. 


CHAPTER  IV. 


Orkjinai.  Sin — (2(1)  Subject  already  touched  ujm)!! — 
Depth  of  root  responsible  for  this,  and  present  return  to 
"man's  nature"— Sn  not  inherent  in  mD  'ter— Adam  and  Eve 
at  first  guiltless  beinps — Our  I^hI'h  own  Bo<Iy — Orifjinal 
Sin,  a  false  relation  of  existence — Adam's  sin  not  imputed 
to  ua,  but  it  aifeetB  as— How  this  can  be — ^Methods  of  rep- 
resenting Adam — No  danger  here  of  going  too  deep — Adam 
not  simply  "another  man,"  or  "a  remote  ancestor" — ^Adam, 
all  of  us  in  eommencement — (27)  Idea  above  experience — 
Our  imagery  misleading — "A  transmitter  of  life  to  us," 
not  exhaustive  of  subject — The  true  view  of  Adam — Sen- 
sitiveness of  humanity  to  its  first  elective  act— That  act 
destroys  balance — The  lost  balance  iiw  means  Adam's 
image — Sin  and  the  new-born  babe — (ii  )  Original  Sin  a 
negative  "state"— The  babe  a  tiny  human  compass  with  a 
false  polarity. 


6 


SOME  FEATUBE8  OF  THE  FAITH. 


CHAPTER  V. 

The  Savioub— (29)  Can  the  lost  be  regained?  No 
•nd  yea— Humanity  impotent — Extent  of  this  inadequacy 
— ^"The  stream  cannot  rise  higlier  than  its  source" — "With 
man  this  is  impossible,  but  with  God  all  things  are  possible" 
— (30)  Creation  did  not  impoverish  Omnipotence— A  sec- 
ond energy  transcends  tiie  first — A  way  to  the  lost  heritage 
— Title  of  "Saviour"  most  accurate — (31)  "Mediator"  pos- 
sibly misleading— Terms,  and  human  despair— Name  "Sa- 
\iour"  supposes  we  are  lost. 


CHAPTER  VI. 

The  Kingdom  of  Heavex — (32)  No  terms,  and  yet  a 
requirement — ^This  requirement  characteristic — ^It  is  simple, 
yet  significant — The  Kingdom  of  Heaven — Man  must  not 
forget  his  record — This  important  reminder — False  concep- 
ti<m  of  union  with  Saviour— This  the  product  of  the  "light 
of  nature"  only — Christ  made  a  mediator,  not  a  Saviour — 
We  are  not  abandoned  to  this  false  light — ^What  the  true 
hgbt  that  Cometh  into  the  world,  is— The  Saviour's  instruc- 
tions— Readmission  into  His  Kingdom,  not  to  be  mistaken 
— They  are  the  antithesis  of  light  of  nature's  concept — 
(33)  No  irregularity  in  this  entrance  to  the  Kingdom  of 
Heaven — No  forgetfulness  of  man's  past,  ceremonial  recog- 
nition of  it —  ( 34  A  king  and  rebellious  subjects,  an  analogy 
— The  Adamic  arms  of  flesh— We  must  not  waive  the  de- 
cency of  earthly  monaichs'  procedure — Baptism,  the  initia- 
tory rite,  does  not  permit  us  to  waive  it — The  word  "Sacra- 
ment" meaningful  though  unscriptural — ^The  passing  of 
self-reliance — The  outward  act  and  the  inward  belief — 
(35)  The  belief  though  necessary  does  not  merit  the  gift 
of  Baptism — Trust  necessary  to  man — Himself  or  more  than 
himself— Abandonment  of  self — The  required  condition  in 
man — A  possible  condition — ^This  condition  only  the  cry 
of  bdptossmss. 


SOME  FKATTTBES  OF  THB  FAITH.  7 

CHAPTER  VII. 

Baftisu  of  John  the  Baptist — (36)  The  Baptism 
of  Repentance,  and  Christian  Baptism — ^Likeness  and  un- 
likeness  of  the  baptisms  and  their  significance — Sins  and 
sin — ^the  branches,  and  the  root  of  sin — ^The  product,  and 
the  mechani?"^  that  produces — Those  baptized  by  John 
come  to  the  apostles  to  be  baptized — (37)  the  Saviour's 
view  of  the  race — Patching  futile — ^The  whole  mass  must 
be  recast — Eloquent  figures  used  by  Christ — How  they 
show  this — His  thoroughness — His  far--, caching  policy  and 
plan— The  newest  sprout  reproduces  the  trunk — ^The  pro- 
posed overthrow  of  both — Christ  now  becomes  the  root — 
(38)  Generation  becomes  regeneration — The  old  and  new 
birth — The  disciples  not  mere  sympathizers — They  are 
branches  in  the  Vine,  and  the  makers  of  branches — ^Their 
commission  shows  this — (39)  Baptism  is  the  meeting- 
ground  of  Creator  and  creature — "So  unseemly  fusion  pos- 
sible—Is the  formality  of  Baptism  thus  too  bare?  It  is 
little,  but  man  can  give  little— Meaning  of  miscalculation 
at  this  point — ^Is  man  at  any  time  capable  of  more? 

CHAPTER  VIII. 

Chbistiax  Baptisj*— (40)  Water  and  the  body- 
Immortality  of  the  body— Both  parts  of  man's  nature 
affected  in  Baptism — ^An  exclusively  soul  religion,  not 
Christianity — Body  of  Christ  now  and  forever  at  the  right 
hand  of  God — Body  more  paramount  than  subordinate — 
The  "Vine"  a  bodily  figure— Difficulty  found  by  many  to  ad- 
mit body  to  its  due  share  in  Christianity—  (41)  Christianity 
so  much  a  thing  of  the  heart — Causes  of  this  challenging 
of  the  body  lie  deep — ^Hard  to  think  "there  is  no  health  in 
Also  to  believe  our  highest  interests  attended  to 
without  us — Natural  belief  that  we  purchase  our  benefits— 
This  naturalness  does  not  extend  to  investigating  source 
of  purchasing  power— Faith  said  to  save  us,  and  this  of  our 
own  producing— The  exchange  made  at  the  font — But  faith 
that  is  true  springs  from  conscious  helplessness — ^A  flower 
growing  out  of  ruin  and  decay— Let  such  faith  flourish 


8  80ME  FEATURES  OF  THE  FAITH. 

—A  Pelagian  faith  kills  grace— A  little  water,  what  is  it  ? 
(42)  Especially  since  it  owes  nothing  to  usf   Onr  im- 
potence too  plainly  shown  by  it ;  ought  to  be  better  argued 
— Kernel  of  difficulty — Character  of  the  Saviour  too  noble 
for  us— The  washing  power  of  water— All  this  from  light 
of  nature,  a  light  which  failed  us — As  the  Saviour  is  com- 
petent, so  His  institutions  are  suitable — Unhallowed  dust 
agrees  to  be  reanimated — Presumption  excluded — ^Are  we 
fit  to  improve  Christ's  plans?    All  tampering  here,  even  in 
thought  means  sullen  hostility  to  Christ— (43)  Trusting 
to  cither  half  of  this  Sacrament  perilous — Those  who 
choose  the  outward  are  warned  by  the  dead  branch— Those 
who  adore  the  boon  while  despising  the  means  employed 
by  Christ,  lose  Christianity — Entrance  on  Kingdom  not 
effected — Surrounding  trees  and  the  vine — ^Adam  and  dis- 
obedience—The Christian  and  obedience— World  not  best 
judge  of  "goodness"  —  Spiritual  union    (so-called),  un- 
spiritual  —  Pure  Adamism  — The  boldness  of  this  kind 
of  "devoutness"  —  If  world's  sense  rules  here  it  con- 
demns   Christ's    acts    before    His    "Ephphatha"  —  (44) 
The  being  of  the  Saviour  impeached  —  Again  Manich- 
eanism — This  emotionalism  or  heart  wanning  vs.  Christ- 
ianity— (45)   "Xot  far  from  the  Kingdom  of  God"  — 
Fitness  for  grafting,  not  equivalent  of  grafting  itself — 
Likeness  to  Christ  in  unbaptized— Unlikeness  to  Him  in 
Baptized— The  comparison  righted— (46)  Striking  instance 
of  John  Baptist— Our  I^rd  points  to  the  case— The  least, 
greater  than  the  greatest— Heresy  enforces  study  of  Christ- 
ian symbols— (47)  Old  foes  with  new  faces — Baptism,  and 
a  good  beyond  leaili  of  creature— (48)  The  beginning  of 

man  s  work  before  God— The  railway  engine  derailed  

(49)  It  is  useless,  ovcii  liiirmful  strength— Alan  rights  it 
on  the  rails  and  its  iK)wer  is  useful— The  Thirteenth  Ar- 
ticle—Two facts  clear  from  this  imagery— Self-achieved 
success  a  danger— (50)  Christian  fusion  without  Baptism 
like  the  derailed  engine  and  lower  parallel  course— Hyp- 
polytus  of  Euripides— Baptism  makes  goal  possible— It  does 
not  bestow  it. 


SOME  FEATITRE8  OF  THE  FAITH. 


9 


CHAPTER  IX. 
IirrANT  Baptism — (51)  Foregoing  seemingly  applicH- 
ble  only  to  adults — The  courtesy  of  explanation — Children 
cannot  repent,  therefore  children  cannot  be  baptized — (52) 
This  stated  dilTerently,  e.g.,  children  cannot  understand 
a  benefit,  therefore  they  cannot  receive  one — This  alleged 
"li^t-of-nature"  reason,  the  slender  base  for  schism — The 
lig^t  of  nature  must  give  wajr  to  mind  of  Christ — (53) 
Even  "light  of  nature"  fails  Haptists — Child  enters  into 
covenant  of  citizenship— Intelligence  does  not  increase  the 
privileges — The  child  and  Chief  Justice  maltreated  abroad 
— The  possible  only  required  of  each — Children  not  aliens 
until  they  take  the  oath — The  Kingdom  of  God  discredited 
by  "Baptist"  position — (54)  Parents  a  god  to  their  chil- 
dren—  (55)  "The  promise  is  unto  you  and  to  your  children" 
— (56)  Even  children  of  heathens  who  had  become  Jews, 
circumcised — St.  Paul's  decision  and  its  reasons — (37) 
Even  one  parent  wlio  is  baptized  makes  children  eligible — 
(58)  Meaning  of  the  word  "holy" — No  question  as  to  chil- 
dren when  both  parents  are  Christian  or  baptized — Natural 
at  first  to  appeal  to  grown  persona — Restriction  to  those 
un-Christian — ^The  demur,  "there  is  no  command  in  Scrip- 
ture"—  (5!))  Answered  by,  "there  is  no  conmiand  to  not 
baptise  children — "The  apostles  were  Jews" — 1«0)  No  com- 
mand to  baptize  women,  nor  to  admit  women  to  Holy 
Communion,  nor  to  worship  on  first  day  of  the  week — Tide 
of  custom  of  apostles  not  in  need  of  command — Testimony 
of  successors  of  apostles  to  Church's  custom — Evidence,  not 
opinion — The  difference — Unaccountable  silence  of  apostles 
for  Baptists  to  explain— (Ul)  Whole  households  baptized 
by  them,  were  children  excluded  t  Call  in  the  Witnesses — 
Justin  Martyr's  testimony — (62)  Irenaeus' — Tertullian's 
interesting  evidence — His  opinion  in  its  hostility  to  the 
Church's  custom  becomes  evidence  for  Infant  Baptism — 
Origefr— (63)  Westcott's  note. 

CHAPTER  X. 

Si»  AFTEB  Baptism- (64)  Baptism  restores  Edon  iws- 
sibilities,  but  sin  enters  into  this  state  of  restorati<  u,  too 


10 


SOME  FEATUBES  OF  THE  FAITH. 


—Baptism,  like  Eden,  bestows  no  present  achierement— De- 
sirable for  prospective  reasons— Baptism  much  or  nothing 
— (W)  Baptism  and  the  multitude— "The  many,"  and  "The 
few"— Baptism  supposes  faithfulness— Dividing  line- 
Saviour's  will  our  law— Graft  requires  subsequent  care- 
Baptizing  and  "teaching  to  observe"— epitomized— God  and 
our  neighbor— Morality  apart  from  Christ— (66)  What  it 
needs  to  be  Christian— Much  that  does  not  need  reform— 
Crimelessness  not  Christianity. 

Digression  ON  Faithfulness— (67)  Jealously  an- 
alyze nature  of  "faithfulness"— Latent  Judaism  a  dangerous 
propensity— The  Laborers  in  the  Vineyard— ( 68 )  The  penny 
is  the  riches  of  the  Gospel— Murmurers  justified  if  payment 
is  only  what  they  think  it — Service  not  said  to  be  full 
equivalent  of  reward — ^Unmercenary  matter  put  in  money 
mould  for  minds  only  so  influenced— Householder  not  mer- 
cenary—The hard  bargain-makers  have  their  reward— The 
payment  in  form  only  a  penny,  material  gold— True  service 
in  God's  Vineyard  gives  us  eyes  to  see,  to  know  the  truth 
and  be  made  free— (69)  The  truth  here  is  that  the  call 
itself  is  the  boon — Labor  done  on  ourselves — ^Permitted  to 
do  our  first  acceptable  act— The  righted  locomotive— Mis- 
conception removed  by  our  service— Call  of  laborers,  a  ben- 
efaction to  them— Not  occasioned  by  householder's  need  of 
them— Chri-t  must  be  central  fountain  of  our  interetrt  in 
life  (70)  Christianity  and  amiable  godlessness. 

CHAPTER  XI. 

Sin  after  Baptism  {Continued) —  {7 1)  in  presence 
of  attitude  of  "the  many,"  what  is  there  in  the  way  of  hope? 
Gre«i  branches,  but  with  a  life  that  is  deceiving— This  life 
they  had  before  grafting— It  is  not  the  Vine  life— What  is 
their  remedy?  Are  the  unfaithful  blanches  to  be  cut  off? 
and  regraftedT  No  second  grafting— Baptism  never  re- 
peated—WTiat  hope  for  the  many?  Wrong  cannot  be 
erased— Reparation  impossible— Each  moment  demands  our 
utmost— No  present,  and  an  uncertain  future— Dependent 
on  mercy  of  Qod— No  h<^  of  jmnlon  for  fallen  angels— 


SOME  PEA  TUBES  OF  THE  FAITH.  11 

(72)  Witli  man  a  difference  is  made — Bright  side  of 
Church's  mission — Grafting  into  the  Vine  doM  not  mean 
instant  death  of  Adamic  impulse — (73)  Clearness  of  Scrip- 
ture— ^New  nature  side  by  side  with  the  old — New  hope  on 
ruins  of  old  hope — Conflicts  to  be  expected — Victory  for 
old  against  new  life,  not  a  final  triumph — Saviour's  plan 
does  not  so  %11  short — The  Church  nurtures  graft  directly, 
and  through  home  influence — (74)  Sorrow,  need,  sickness, 
etc. — Case  of  the  Godless  baptized  remediable — Order  not 
issued  to  "cut  it  down" — ^Appeal  of  Scripture  tc  baptized 
to  return  to  God.  a  promise  of  remedy — (75)  The  recall 
of  Scripture  a  bona  fide  offer — Not  a  mockery — Besides  this 
implied  hope,  expressed  assurances — CbSperation  on  our 
part,  when  looked  for? — (76)  We  pray  for  what  we  cannot 
compass  alone — The  talent  wrapped  in  a  napkin — Christian 
seeking  forgiveness  must  do  his  part — ^What  is  itt  For- 
give his  brother — (77)  That  the  promit.;  of  forgiveness 
thus  conditional  only  means  that  it  is  real — Building  on 
shifting  morass — ^The  Unmerciful  Servant— This  require- 
ment not  merely  arbitrary — God's  laws  our  friends — Hard 
obedience  how  transformed — The  filial  relationship,  its 
power — ^Absence  of  this  relationship,  its  eiTect — ^Difficulty 
of  belief  in  forgiveness  lessened — Passage  from  Epistle  of 
James — (78)  Case  of  St.  Peter — Kind  of  forgiveness — 
Prodigal  Son,  etc..  as  examples — ^Till  seven  times  T — (79) 
Dreadful  opposing  passages — The  Great  Lapse: — Epistle  to 
Hebrews — Apostasy — This  after  effusion  of  Holy  Ghost — 
(80)  A  sin  unto  death — ^Novatians'  severity — Sin  not  unto 
death— (81)  Sin's  doom— (82)  Sin  against  the  Holy 
Ghost  (83). 

CHAPTER  XII. 

Repentajtce— (84)  The  majority  of  the  regenerate- 
Sin  manifested,  but  possibly  its  death  struggle — ^The  Christ- 
ian a  soldier — (8.5)  A  misconception — The  danger — (86)  A 
man's  work  and  a  child's — (87)  The  prodigal  son — ^He  came 
to  himself — Should  we  say  this? — (88)  Mere  sobriety  vs.  a 
foui»*ai'-  of  tears — Point  of  the  parable  !o3t — Repentance 
*he  ^awn  of  sober  sense — (89)  Monopoly  of  "fuller  idea" — 


12 


SOME  FEATFB^  OF  THE  FAITH. 


(90)  Ony  stresks  tell  of  day— Fuller  «nd  lesser  repentance 

— The  naked  second  thought — (91)  Repentance  a  change  of 
mind — ( 92 )  Shortening  God's  arm — Repentance  of  the  con- 
feasi<niB— (93)  The  feelings— The  Confessions  continued. 

CHAPTER  XIII. 

The  Holy  Communion — (Introductory)— (94)  Dig- 
ging too  deep — Pit  for  theologians — The  Churc)  a  loser  by 
its  wealth — Laity  and  clergy — (95)  A  necessary  inquiry — 
Clearness  of  Scripture — (96)  Appreciable  revivification  ex- 
pected of  Christ — Christendom's  divisions — Theorists — (97) 
Theory  instead  of  mercy  itself — ^An  analogy  oiTered — Bread, 
eaten  in  ignorant  thankfulness,  sustains — (98)  Scribal 
Christianity — Hillol  and  Shanimai — Temerity  of  scholar- 
ship— True  office  of  theology — An  obtrusive  theorist — Our 
Lord's  collaborateurs — ^His  own  all  sufficiency — ^The  apostles 
chosen,  and  /hy — (9!*)  Earth-born  intrusiveness — Its  op- 
posite, vacuity — Growth — A  forged  explanation,  and  a  flat 
denial. 

CHAPTER  XIV. 

Holy  CoMMrxio.x — (The  Mosaical  Sacrifices)  —  (100) 
Precedents  of  the  ^Vncient  Church — Passover  and  Lord's 
Supper — Focus  of  religious  aspirations — Incense  and  sacri- 
fice—  (101)  Their  meanings— Their  authority — St.  Paul's 
testimony — St.  Paul's  paradox — Hebrews  ix.  13  and  Hebrews 
X.  14 — Design  of  the  paradox — (102)  High  significance  of 
Jewish  Sacrifices- Temporary— The  added  value — Common 
things  explain  situation— ( 103)  A  bank  note,  and  some  of 
its  lessons — (104)  The  currency  of  Heaven— Ability  and 
powerlessness  of  it— The  stupendous  Reality  deposited — 
(105)  What  the  Jews  thought— Dr.  Dale's  note. 

CHAPTER  XV. 

Holy    Communion    (The    Atonement)  — ( 106)  The 

Atonement  and  its  place — From  certain  point  of  view  

False  promising— The  typical  case  put— The  fallacy— ( 107) 
The  rnnning  account — Its  proposed  payment — Good  sense 
wanting— EfTects   and   causes— (108)    Christianity  aod 


SOMK  PSATURE8  OF  THE  FAITH. 


13 


magic — Pay  as  »ve  fi;o,  no  settlement  of  tlie  pant — (10!))  A 
forbiddi:.g  perplexity — Wealth  to  pay  our  debts — ^Thi« 
within  reach — Attention  only  needed — Life's  lirittleness — 
(110)  The  eleventh  hour  and  the  dallier — Our  debt  not  the 
only  difficulty — ( 111 )  Dishonor  of  inaction — "How  I  greatly 
love" — (112)  The  forgiveness  of  sins  illustrated — Agency 
of  conscience — Amendment  and  Hypocrisy — Conscience's 
implacability — Stand  taken — Christianity  and  Conscience 
— The  place  of  the  Church — (113)  Meaning  of  "weary  and 
heavy  laden" — Privilege  of  appeal  to  Christ  direct — Neigh- 
borly office  of  the  Cliurch — Hope  in  human  despair — Con- 
science notwithstanding — (114)  Meaning  of  "forgiveness  of 
sins" — Intellectual  palsy — No  airy  magic  about  Atonement 
— Pajnnent  made  in  full  our  due  response — (llo)  Early 
views  of  Atonement — The  apostles'  methods — Two  first  cen- 
turies not  given  to  analysis  —  Westcott's  note — (116) 
Origen  and  Ireneeus  ojien  the  question  of  Atonement 
—  The  answer  of  the  Fatheis  —  The  character  of  the 
answer  —  Luther  at  Rome  illustrates  —  Christ's  ransom- 
ing us  from  Satan  —  The  main  current  of  thought  — 
Anselm  Archbishop  of  Canterbury — (117)  His  signifi- 
cant tact  —  Gregory  of  Nyssa  and  his  views — (118) 
St.  Augustine — No  change  till  Anselm.  and  after  Anselm, 
practically — (119)  Dale's  quotation  from  St.  Bernard — 
Never  a  burning  question — Theory  not  essential — (120) 
"Cur  Dcus  Homo" — Anselm's  style — What  it  means  as  re- 
gards the  Church's  popular  conception — (121)  The  en- 
lightened view — The  Atonement  to  our  eyes — Recapitulation 
— Relationship  to  Adam  vs.  ancestry — (122)  The  promise  in 
Gen.  iii.  15— The  three  great  truths,  and  Jewish  Sacrifices 
— Adam's  sin  and  ours — Second  Adam's  merit  and  ours — 

(123)  Rallying  point  of  unbelief — Subject  larger  than  crit- 
ics' models — Cause  of  misunderstanding — The  anomaly  em- 
phasized— The  voice  of  Fatherhood  speaking  in  Eden — 

(124)  It  meant  sacrifice,  and  rebegetting  of  the  race — ( 12.>) 
The  beauty  of  holiness,  and  the  righteousness  of  God- 
Isaiah  liii.,  "Lo,  I  come"— (126)  Knowledge  of  Saviour- 
How  great  the  sacrifice— God's  will,  the  creature's  good 


14 


SOME  FEATUBKS  OF  THE  FAITH. 


— The  first  Adam  a  dissident — hattj  homage  of  Second 
Adam — (127)  Christ's  Sacrifice  to  righteousness  of  God — 
Creator's  honor  and  creature's  good — (128)  Many  ideas  of 
Messiah — The  Messiah  does  not  pursue  expected  course — Sew 
death  in  His  path — (129)  Bodily  bruising  not  the  worst — 
Hiding  of  the  Father's  face— The  Cross  the  climax— Perfect 
Sacrifice  rends  veil  of  temple — We  gaze  adoringly  on  the 
Cross'  finality — The  gibe  "come  down  from  the  cross" — 
(180)  Triumphant  hatred  begets  it — Qethsemane  proves 
God's  will  for  man  possible  and  best — The  image  of  God 
restored  by  Gethsemane — (131)  Gethaemane  and  the  three 
chosen  ones — (132)  Were  they  representatives?  Humanity's 
possible — The  parable — Our    sleeping  perception — Man's 
attitude  now  m^at  be  that  of  gratitude  and  humility — 
(133)  Fountain-head  of  humanity  established — (134)  The 
Divine  means  of  reaching  us — The  Church — The  womb  of 
the  new  birth — Holy  method  in  manner  of  reaching  us — 
This  shown,  our  state  and  God's  nature — ( 135)  Our  "word" 
and  "deed"  to  be  said  and  done — Apply  tlie  means  of  grace 
established — Brief   definition   of   the  Atonement — Aged 
sceptic  and  the  missionary,  an  incident — (136)  Gladstone's 
words — (137)  Eden  lost  and  gained  by  "eating" — (138)  To 
eat  and  know  why  we  eat,  our  part — We  only  come  at  best 
to  the  distributing  point — The  merit  all  Christ's — (139) 
Our    latent    Judaism — Inward    feeling  wanting — Merit 
deemed  to  be  in  declining  the  sacred  Elements — Our  con- 
sciousness of  sinfulness  and  desecratioii — ^Unfitness  for 
Holy  Communion — Some  wholesomeness   of  sentiment — 
Shown  by  opposite — Shocking  spectacle  of  designing  for- 
wardness— Its  rarity — Notwithstanding  wholesomeness,  the 
attitude  is  wrong — The  Church  of  God  is  no  mere  court  of 
justice — A  court  of  appeal — It  destroys  and  scorns  all  regu- 
lar procedure — (140)  Pulpits  in  the  porch — "Not  good 
enough  to  communicate" — ^Peculiarity  of  this  defence — 
Periods  of  worthiness — These  how  secured — ^Mere  oblivion 
trusted  to— Works  of  supererogation — Faithfulness  above 
perfect — Christ  refused  for  individual  saviours — Christ  or 
ourselves — ^No  real  choice — ^Appeal  to  our  heads,  not  to  our 


SOIIK  FBATUBM  OF  THE  FAITH. 


15 


feelings — This  Chiist'd  plan — Our's  differs  from  it — Belief 
in  ourselves  rather  than  in  God's  word— (141)  On  which 
our  hope  is  suspended — The  parishioner  must  think — ( 142) 
Never  more  fit  than  now  on  his  own  plan — Non-participat- 
ing himself,  what  is  his  opinion  of  those  who  p«rt«lcet— ' 
Do  they  to  themselvef  meet  hia  ideal? — Nothing  more  pre- 
posterous—  (143)  The  Holy  Eucharist  no  parade-ground — 
The  fitness  that  unfits — Parishioner  who  sees  a  real  sinner 
partake — (144)  Popular  notion  of  communicants  as  ainleaa 
evidenced — Godly  discipline  of  the  Primitive  Church  re* 
jected  for  individual  tyranny — (145)  Consequences — But 
what  of  this  black  sheep? — (146)  Our  Lord  answers  the 
query— By  His  word  and  deed — Peter's  denial  and  Peter's 
sermon  —  The  godless  foremost  to  condemn  —  Our  Lord 
does  not — ^The  Church  a  hospital — (147)  She  waits  no 
Udding  to  extend  rescue — Our  neighbor's  case  merely  not 
ours — (148)  Docs  not  the  Bible  condemn  obtruders — The 
exhortation  to  communion  (omitted  by  compilers  of  Amer- 
ican Prayer  Book)  accentuates  St.  Paul's  warning  to  Corin- 
thians— EflTect  of  this  passage  on  the  many — (149)  It  ap- 
plies to  none  of  these — (150)  "Unworthily"  torn  from  its 
context,  is  a  general  prohibition — ^Examination  of  the  word 
"worthily" — Forgiveness  of  sins  not  generally  believed— 
(151)  Light  of  nature  again  demanding  the  impossible — 
Make  our  sins  unreal,  or  wipe  them  out  before  coming  to 
God — Do  we  know  what  Christianity  mi.  Only  one 
class  considered  here — (152)  Those  who  do  not  enjoy  the 
highest  happiness  they  might— The  apostle's  awful  denun- 
ciation only  once  merited — The  Agape  or  Love  feast  

Chrysostora's  account  of  it— (153)  Dean  Alford's  correction 
of  a  detail— St.  Augustine's  "Answer  to  Faustus"  instruc- 
tive—Agape forbidden  by  St.  Ambrose— ( 154)  The  Church's 
custom  since  early  days — Excesses  condemned  by  St.  Paul, 
arose  out  of  Agape— This  abolished  for  over  a  millennium-^ 
Fulmination  obsolete— ( 155)  This  letter  gave  rise  to  the 
"spirit"  meaning  of  "unworthiness"  ?— To  this,  two  pertinent 
observations— St.  Paul's  design  in  writing  First  Epistle  to 
Corinthians— The  Hellenic  mind  and  its  difficulties— Differ- 
ences between  sin  condemned  in  Corinthians,  and  sins  of 


16 


80M£  FEATUBS8  OF  THF.  FAITH. 


today— Two,    and    striking^InAvidiMl    •iafulncM  not 
touched  on  by  apostle— ( 150)  They  oonceincd  administra- 
tion of  the  ordinances — Passages  set  to>fetlier — Historical 
reference  to  the  times— (167)  Socraten  gives  account  of 
temple  feast*— Passage  from  Xenophon— Tliis  outline  fllled 
in  from  other  source*— Vice  in  whole  Roman  Empire  inten- 
sified in  Greece  and  focussed  in  Corinth— Religious  conse- 
cration of  licentiousness  there— St.  Paul's  picture  of  Cor- 
inth  in  first  chapter  of  Romans — St.  Paul's  material — (158) 
His  first  and  second  congregations  at  Corinth— Undermin- 
ing teachers  in  apostle's  absence— St.  Paul's  teaching  and 
the  deealogue— Ref  nns— (1S9)  Minatory  language  due  to 
adminiHtration — Cu  .  we  put  non-conimunicants  to-day  in 
class  with  Corinthian  banqueters?— ( 100)  Two  cases  in- 
stanced— The  mother  of  a  family— A  young  person  tempted 
after  preparation— (101 )  The  Holy  Eucharist  administered 
properly  to-day — Faults  in  opposite  direction— ( 162)  Set- 
ting requirements  too  hi^i— An  obaenration  of  Bingham's— 
Offending  "one  of  these  little  ones"— Corinthian  banquet 
on  one  hand,  "offending  one  of  these,"  on  the  other- The 
Church  does  not  "break  the  bruised  reed"— Other  causes  of 
non-partaking— Controversial   works— Human   war  about 
God's  peace— Long  quotation  from  Hooker— (103)  Hooker's 
divisions  of  Christianity  three— Our's  in  this  age  four- 
(164)  Plain  statement  of  the  four  beliefs— Of  these  the  first 
and  second  hold  literal  interpretation  of  the  words,  "This 
is  my  Body"— These  joined  under  Transubstantiation  for 
convenience— ( 105)  No  discourtesy  to  Lutheran  body— ( 100) 
The  carnal,  the  spiritual,  and  the  negative  views— Between 
two  logical  extremes  where  is  Anglican  ground?— (167) 
The  three  offices  for  Holy  Communion  traced  to  the  conse- 
cration—Two agree  to  a  change— What  is  the  change?— Dis- 
course of  our  Lord  at  Capernaum— A  year  later  the  Lord's 
Supper— Mere  rhetoric  impossible— The  quivering  flesh  of 
the  Redeemer,  repellant— Is  there  nothing  known  to  us  as 
at  once  itself,  and  more  than  its  apparent  self?— We  are 
justly  called  debtors— (168)  Waiters  in  the  capitalist'* 

offiee— His  treatment  of  us  and  of  his  promise  to  us  The 

cheque  he  orders  to  be  written  out— His  signing  it— The 


SOMS  VSATVBSS  Or  THE  FAITir. 


17 


change  made  by  the  aignature — Money  or  not  money? — The 
Romanist  »ay«  it  ia  gold— ( 160)  The  sectarian  aaya  it  it 
intrinaically  valueless— \o  miracle,  but  true  wealth— ( 170) 
Talce  this  imagery  to  the  pew  during  a  celebration  of  the 
Holy  Communion — Christ's  promise  eluinu^d — Kvery  step  !a 
Liturgy  authorized— All  awaita  Uia  aignature— THg  given. 
Hit  aign-nMBual  atanda  in  Heaven— (171)  Conceptions 
right  everywhere  else,  wrong  here — World-conscience  silent 
here— Christ  alone  dominates  all— "To  them  and  in  them  My 
Body"— Rmnneiation  of  the  world  In  ita  beat  ideala— Ad- 
hesion to  these  robs  us  of  peace  after  Holy  Communion— 
(172)  God  held  untruthful,  or  we  enthralled— Thia  influ- 
ence makea  the  freed  walk  in  chain*— (173)  The  Church'a 
prayer  for  both  pardon  and  peace— Indeterniinateness  sr,i- 
OU8— A  closer  view  of  the  waiter  on  the  rich  friend— (174) 
His  warranty— Real  need  the  due  oeeaaion— Aid  to  bif  ade- 
quate—Three suppositions — Showing  negative  view  impious 
— Of  our  right  and  left  neighbors  we  say  to  one,  we  will  not 
have  it.  and  to  the  other,  we  dare  not  have  it— Romaniat 
does  not  undervalue  what  is  offered— ( 175)  He  might  par- 
take at  our  altars — We  cannot,  however,  agree  that  chequea 
are  always  written  on  gold. 


SOME  FEATURES  OF  THE  FAITR 


CHAPTER L 

00I>-^(THZ  THKISTIC  position)  FBOIC  THB 

chuboh's  wist  of  view. 

§1. 

Co  PBOVE  the  existence  of  God,  fonns  no  part 
of  the  design  of  the  present  undertaking. 
We  may,  however,  not  unprofitably  glance  for 
a  moment  beyond  the  borders  of  faith,  and  en- 
deavor to  discover  the  actual  position  of  the  hostile 
camp. 

The  Avork  of  proclaiming  the  blcssid  vorities 
of  Cliristian  Theism  through  the  instrumentality 
of  dry  reasoning,  can  derive  but  little  encourage- 
ment from  the  history  of  past  efforts  in  this  direc- 
tion. Those  who  have  ably  stood  forth  in  defence 
of  the  faith,  against  unbelief,  tell  us  that  their 
books  have,  for  the  most  part,  been  left  unread  by 


20 


80MX  nSATUBES  OF  THE  FAITH. 


those  for  whom  they  were  specially  written,  and 
that  even  their  public  oral  presentations  of  our  case 
have  failed  to  attract  those  who  openly  oppose 
tlie  Christian  position. 

That  so  little  good  should  arise  from  reasoning 
out  our  faith  before  those  who  disavow  it,  when 
we  receive  the  courtesy  of  their  attention,  is  not 
so  wonderful  as  might  at  first  sight  appear;  for 
while  we  may,  perhaps,  not  iinreasonably  expect 
that  the  due  treatment  of  Christianity  should  se- 
cure its  triumph  in  any  competition  with  such 
claims  as  infidelity  can  lay  to  our  confidence; 
yet  defeat  in  argument  is  not  a  very  winning 
kind  of  introduction  to  anything,  however  desir- 
able. 

The  small  results  of  apologetic  labors,  as  re- 
gards converts  to  our  side,  is  otherwise  accounted 
for  when  we  remember  how  poor  and  how  unin- 
viting a  thing  the  religion  of  Christ  (which  is  the 
phase  of  Theism  with  which  we  are  concerned)  is, 
when  its  full  life  is  sought  to  be  infused  into  the 
very  inadequate  corporeity  of  language. 

It  is  a  patent  impossibility  to  put  our  holy 
religion  on  paper. 

Language,  the  most  forceful  and  lucid,  can 
never  be  Christianity;  and  tliorefore  the  honest 
sceptic,  even  if  he  devote  himself  studiously  to  the 


SOME  FEATURES  OF  THE  FAITH.  21 


work  of  reading  our  apologists  in  order  to  gain 
a  knowledge  of  our  religion,  can  never  realize 
through  the  imperfect  medium  of  words,  a  concep- 
tion which  at  every  point  transcends,  evades,  and 
overtaxes  the  capacities  of  discourse. 

The  very  name  by  which  Christians  are  di- 
vinely taught  to  address  God,  may  serve  in  a  hum- 
ble way  to  illustrate  this. 

To  sons  only  is  it  given  to  understand  the  ful- 
ness of  meaning  which  that  word  "Fa<^her"  conveys 
to  those  who  are  privileged  to  use  it.  Imagine 
anyone  who,  either  by  a  strange  misfortune,  or  by 
deliberately  tearing  out  of  his  nature  all  trace  of 
it,  is  utterly  wanting  in  the  faintest  sense  of 
what  a  father  is  to  a  son — imagine  this  difficult 
thing — and  we  may  well  despair  of  giving  any 
proper  notion  of  the  matter  to  such  an  one,  es- 
pecially if  we  are  restricted  to  the  slender  pos- 
sibilities of  description. 

§2. 

But  even  the  closest  and  most  intimate  observa- 
tion of  the  bearing  of  worthy  fathers  towards  their 
children  will  not  compass  for  an  onlooker,  that 
unique  and  incommunicable  knowledge  of  a  parent 
which  belongs  exclusively  to  sons  and  daughters. 

And  thus  it  is  with  God  in  religion.  We  are 
not  permitted  to  know  Him  speculatively.  We 


22 


SOME  FEATUBES  OF  THE  FAITH. 


must  rather  become  as  little  eliildreii — begin  where 
we  ought  to  have  begun  at  first.  We  must  be 
actually  born  again  into  His  family,  and  have  the 
consciousness  of  this  high  sonship  woven  into  the 
warp  and  woof  of  our  being,  and  thus  be  trans- 
formed into  a  proper  fitness  attaining  rightly  to 
the  great  truth  of  Theism — ^that  Qod  is. 

From  the  poverty  of  the  conception  of  God 
which  is  acquired  in  any  other  way,  we  may  per- 
haps judge  that  God  never  designed  that  He  should 
be  made  known  to  any  great  extent  by  carefully 
wrought  out,  worded  demonstrations  of  His  exist- 
ence.* 

The  Church's  way  secures  a  duly  reverent  ap- 
proach to  the  Divine  Presence,  and  prevents  the 
idle  presumptuous  gaze  of  unadoring  spectators, 
in  effecting  which,  the  Church  acts  as  friend  to  the 
world. 


•  Note  A. 


CHAPTER  II. 


THE  CBEATION  (OENESIS  OF  MAN). 
§3. 

CHE  MIND  of  num  has  in  all  ages  tried  of  its  own 
strength  to  fathom  the  mystery  of  irmn  s  or- 
igin. It  has  again  and  again  produced  brilliant 
theories,  but  they  have  satistied  no  one.  The  hu- 
man heart  does  not  readily  surrender  to  a  theory, 
which  after  all,  is  only  one  of  many  theories. 

Authoritative  assertion  is  necessary.  Philos- 
ophy does  not  possess  this;  and  Science,  the  only 
human  thing  that  can  possibly  wear  anything  like 
authority,  after  achieving  much  that  is  most  use- 
ful to  religion,  learnedly  confesses  its  failure. 

It  is  through  Bevelation  alone,  that  we  get  any 
information  on  the  subject;  and  the  character  of 
that  information  is  in  every  way  becoming  to  its 
high  source. 

It  is  no  theory.  Nor  is  it  that  kind  of  author- 
ity which  we  are  accustomed  to  see  bolstered  up 


24 


SOME  FEATUBX8  OF  THE  FAITH. 


by  elaborate  defences.  It  is  the  calm  assertioii 
of  fact;  which  unthout  ado  of  any  kind,  without 
any  anned  preparation  against  gainsaying,  breaks 
on  the  mind  like  the  sun  upon  the  morning — 
"God  created  man  in  His  own  Image ;  in  the  linage 
of  God  created  He  him."* 

§4. 

In  th  inspired  account  man  occupies  a  dig- 
nified position  between  the  realm  of  created  ex- 
istences on  the  one  hand,  and  God  on  the  other; 
between  creation  and  the  Creator.    If  we  under- 
take to  examine  man  as  we  should  analyze  any  of 
the  creatures  over  which  he  is  placed  as  ruler,  we 
shall  find  that  we  come  upon  something  in  his  na- 
ture, for  which  all  the  rest  of  creation  provides 
us  with  no  canon,  and  of  which  we  shall  have  no 
means  of  measurement  or  comparison.    He  is, 
indeed,  "a  limb  of  the  great  body  of  nature  un- 
winding himself  from  out  of  the  swaddling  bands 
of  the  natural  life,  and  siubject  to  the  natural  laws 
for  the  development  of  his  species,"!  but  this 
does  not  outline  his  whole  being.    He  is  something 
more  than  this ;  something  there  is  in  him  which 
plainly  overruns  these  limits,  evincing  his  fitness 
for  that  rulership  to  which  he  is  called,  and  for  the 
noble  office  of  reflecting  God  to  the  eye  of  all  crea- 


•  Nott  B.    f  itartenm. 


SOME  FCATUHK  OF  THE  FAITH.         '  25 

tures  below  him — all  of  which  Holy  Scripture 
means  when  it  predicates  of  him  that  he  is  ''made 
in  the  Image  of  God." 

Man  stands  forth  before  all  created  beings  as 
their  noblest  and  fairest  type.  This  he  has  on 
his  bodily  side;  but  it  is  not  this  whidi  reoeives 
or  can  receive  the  gift  of  likeness  to  God.  A  crea- 
ture— the  highest  and  most  complete  of  all  crea- 
tures— has  impressed  upon  it,  and  breathed  into 
it  a  something  which  bestows  rank  and  fitness  for 
a  life  that  is  more  than  creaturely.  Man  is  a 
spirit  as  well  as  an  animal,  and  in  this  spirit  which 
God  breathed  into  the  animal  form  of  man,  lie 
all  those  rich  possibilities  which  constitute  his  pe- 
culiar dignity. 

§5. 

This  life  is  free  in  the  highest  sense,  but  the 
higb-^'-*  sense  is  not  the  absolute.  Absolute  free- 
d<^  )m  our  present  point  of  view,  without  any- 
thii  ^  jiore  being  su-d  of  it,  might  suggest  the  most 
eccentric  and  even  dangerous  course,  like  that  of 
a  ship  in  mid-ocean,  and  under  full  sail,  without 
pilot  or  rudder.  This  is  not  the  freedom  that 
Adam  realized  in  the  first  flush  of  self-<K>n8cious- 
ness.  His  sense  of  freed<mi  was  that  which  con- 
sisted exquisitely  with  the  genius  of  his  being.  As 


26  BOMS  FEATUBE8  OF  THE  FAITH. 


a  rational  being,  conscious  of  the  source  from 
which  he  sprung,  he  was  also  a  religious  being,  and 
conscience  in  him  gave  direction  to  both  reason  and 
freedom. 

We  may  perhaps  be  assisted  in  understanding 
the  cliaracter  of  this  freedom,  which,  though  con- 
ditioned, is  nevertheless  reallv  unrestricted,  bv 
conceiving  the  liberty  that  belongs  to  a  welcome 
guest  in  the  most  hospitable  of  mansions.  The 
restraints  that  lie  upon  him,  he  in  no  way  feels 
to  be  a  curtailment  of  freedom,  suc'i  as  his  nature 
would  or  could  understand  it.  In  Adam  there  was 
no  sense  of  withdrawal  of  scope  for  the  full  play 
of  his  whole  nature.  Freedom,  true  and  real,  was 
his;  freedom  which,  as  we  have  said,  accorded 
perfectly  with  his  composite  nature ;  for  as  he  was 
at  once  the  summit  and  climax  of  all  created  life, 
and  the  inbreathed  commencement  of  Godhood, 
his  independence  of  the  universe  below  him  was 
assured  to  him  only  through  his  dependence  upon 
his  Creator  above  him. 

It  was  his  to  be  the  free,  intelligent,  sympa- 
tlietic  medium  for  the  transmission  of  the  holy  will 
of  God  to  the  universe.  He  was  invited  by  his  posi- 
tion and  the  whole  structure  of  his  being,  to  merge 
his  independence  in  a  filial  dependence  on  God, 
"and  to  raise  his  life  in  the  world  into  a  life  in 
God." 


SOME  FEATUSES  OF  THE  FAITH. 


27 


§6. 

We  are  not  to  look  upon  Adam  in  his  state  of 
innocence  as  being  perfect.  Those  matured  excel- 
lences, those  clear  discernments  of  right  ami  good, 
those  natural  movements  in  holiness,  acquired  hy 
long  practice,  can  hardly  be  attributed  to  the 
first  man.  It  were  more  strictly  accurate  to  con- 
ceive him,  instead  of  being  perfect  actually,  rather 
as  being  perfectly  equipped  for  the  glorious  devel- 
opment that  lay  open  to  him. 

A  state  of  innocence  is  not  the  same  as  a  state 
of  perfection.  Our  Blessed  Lord's  character  is  by 
no  means  exhaustively  set  forth  when  we  describe 
Him  as  having  lived  a  life  of  blamelessness  and 
innocence,  l^o  such  life  of  negative  virtue  eould 
ever  revolutionize  a  world,  and  '"draw  all  men 
unto"  itself.  Innocence  and  sanctity  are  not  one 
and  the  same  thing.  Paradise,  and  the  tirst 
Adam,  to  us  who  know  the  Second  Adam,  and  the 
Kingdom  of  God,  are  therefore  properly  under- 
stood only  when  we  represent  the  matter  to  our- 
selves as  the  entrance  on  a  career — as  the  stand- 
ing on  the  threshold  of  a  godward  development, 
fully  equipped  for  the  high  achievement  of  perfec- 
tion as  our  "Father  in  Heaven  is  perfect." 

§7. 

In  our  private  devotional  reading  of  Holy 


28 


801CK  7ZATUBX8  OF  THE  FAITH. 


Scripture  we  may  have  found  some  difficulty  in 
obtaining  an  altogether  satisfactory  idea  of  the 
number  of  elements  of  which  human  nature  is  com- 
posed. Scripture  reprraents  it  sometimes  as  made 
up  of  two  parts,  and  at  other  times  it  would  seem 
to  speak  of  three. 

Body  and  spirit,  as  we  have  seen,  both  exist 

in  man ;  but  whether  the  soul  is  really  a  third  ele- 
ment, distinct  from  these  two,  it  is  not  the  matter 
of  a  mere  moment  to  determine. 

St.  Paul  in  writing  to  the  Thessalonians  uses 
these  words  (Chap,  v,  23) :    "And  the  very  God 
of  i)eace  sanctify  you  wholly,  and  I  pray  God 
your  whole  spirit  and  soul  and  body  be  preserved 
blameless  unto  the  coming  of  our  Lord  Jesus 
Christ."   And  in  the  Epistle  to  the  Hebrews,  the 
writer  seems  to  mark  out  with  even  more  distinct- 
ness of  outline,  the  difference  between  spirit  and 
soul,  and  therefore  to  suggest  their  separate  exist- 
ences.   The  passage  from  Hebrews  is:  "For  the 
word  of  God  is  quick  ^nd  powerful,  and  sharper 
than  a.iy  two-edged  sword,  piercing  even  to  the 
dividing  asunder  of  soul  and  spirit,  and  of  the 
joints  and  marrow,"  etc. 

On  the  strength  of  these  passages  much  has 
been  done  to  elucidate  this  tripartite  division  of 
our  nature.    Whole  hosts  of  thoughts  are  said  to 


80MK  FEATVBES  OF  THK  FAITH.  39 

cluster  round  the  adjectives  derived  from  each 
word  respectively.  ''Spiritual  tilings"  are  shown 
to  be  in  evident  contrast  with  "soul  things."  The 
soul,  it  is  said,  is  the  bond  of  union  between  the 
spirit  and  the  body,  with  a  strong  tenden<gr,  how- 
ever, to  exhibit  a  closer  sympathy  with  the  body 
than  with  the  spirit.  As  the  centre  of  the  pas- 
sions and  desires  which  we  have  in  oonunon  with 
the  biutes  (althou^  in  us  it  is  not  uninfluenced 
by  the  elevating  energy  of  the  spirit),  the  soul 
gravitates  naturally  downward. 

In  this  way  the  nature  of  man  is  divided  into 
three  parts,  distinct  .  id  essential. 

There  is,  however,  something  not  wholly  sat- 
isfactory about  this  labored  defining.  One  cannot 
help  feeling  that  Theology  has  here  been  put  under 
too  great  an  obligation  to  the  philosophy  of  Plato. 
Very  little  encouragement  is  given  to  this  concep- 
tion of  the  soul  from  the  forty-second  chapter 
of  Isaiah,  which  St.  Matthew  quotes  thus,  as 
spoken  by  God :  "Behold  My  servant  whom  I  have 
cliosen,  My  beloved  in  whom  'Sly  Soiil  is  well 
pleased."  Here  the  contention  of  the  soul's  posi- 
tion as  hovering  between  spirit  and  body,  with 
affinities  more  closely  allied  to  the  body,  is  over- 
thrown; for  no  such  description  can  apply  to  the 
nature  of  God.   It  cannot  be  concluded  from  these 


80 


BOMB  FEATCTBXS  OF  THS  7AITH. 


two  passages,  says  Canon  Liddon,  that  man  con- 
sists of  three  essentially  distinct  elements. 

"If  the  language  of  St  Paul  obliges  ns  to  see  in 
soul  and  spirit,  s<nnething  more  than  two  distinct 
relations  of  man's  inward  nature,  it  does  not  imply 
more  than  two  distinct  departments  of  that  nature 
— the  higher  region  of  self-conscious  spirit  and 
self-detennining  will  which  belongs  to  man  as 
man ;  and  the  lower  region  of  appetite,  perception, 
imagination,  memory,  which  in  the  main  is  com- 
mon to  the  undying  soul  of  man,  and  the  perishable 
inmost  being  of  the  brute. 

"Man's  soul  is  not  a  third  nature  poised  between 
his  spirit  and  his  body;  nor  yet  is  it  a  sublimate 
of  his  bodily  crganization,  any  more  than  his  body 
is  a  precipitate  of  \lo  soul. 

"It  is  the  outer  clothing  of  the  spirit,  one  with 
it  in  essence,  yet  distinct  in  functions ;  the  centre 
of  man's  life,  physical  and  animal,  is  his  spirit."* 

This  seems  to  be  a  clear,  plain  setting  forth  of 
man's  dual  nature,  and  one  which  loses  nothing 
of  its  cogency  by  a  reference  to  our  Blessed  Lord's 
utterances  bearing  upon  the  subject,  e.g.,  "The 
spirit  indeed  is  willing,  but  the  flesh  is  weak,"  and 
apain,  when  resigning  His  human  soul  into  His 
Father's  hands,  Ifo  says,  "Father,  into  Thy  hands 
I  commend  My  spirit." 

*  Some  ElemenU  of  ReliffUtn. 


SOKE  n  VTUBE8  OF  THK  VAITII.  31 


§8. 

In  looking  into  the  subject  of  the  genesis  of 
man,  we  are  here  led  to  notice  a  matter  which, 
however,  has  not  as  m'K'h  interest  for  the  minds 
of  to-day  as  it  seems  to  have  possessed  for  those 
of  former  ajjcs.  The  tlieory  of  the  pre-existence 
of  souls,  which  has  it  that  each  of  us  (tha',  is,  our 
inner  spiritual  being)  has  occupied  other  bodies 
than  that  which  he  now  wears,  and  that  we  shall 
continue  to  animate  and  dwell  in  others  still,  in 
the  future,  until  by  a  course  of  exalted  virtue  we 
set  ourselves  free  from  this  enUiralment— -all  this 
is  an  idea  which  sprang  into  existence  in  the  fer- 
tile mind  of  the  East.  Later  on  it  was  embodied 
and  set  forth  prominently  in  the  philosophy  of 
Plato,  and  appears  to  have  attracted  enough  at- 
tention in  the  Christian  w(»rld  of  the  early  cen- 
turies to  have  been  mentioned,  although  only  to  re- 
ceive its  condemnation  as  an  unscriptural  error,  at 
the  first  Council  of  Constantinople. 

TLat  the  soul  existed  before  the  body  of  man, 
is  of  course  a  doctrine  directly  opposed  to  the 
teaching  of  Holy  Scripture;  wherein  it  is  plainly 
stated  that  "God  created  man  in  His  own  image" ; 
and  as  the  soul  or  spirit  is,  as  we  have  seen,  the 
part  of  man's  two-fold  n- Mire  which  is  alone  cap- 
able of  reflecting  that  Divine  image,  we  cannot 


32 


escape  from  the  plain  seme  of  the  iaqpired  wordf, 
that  the  breathing  the  Ahnighty  into  the  noetrils 
of  the  body  which  He  had  prepared  ("and  the  Lord 
Qod  formed  man  of  the  dnst  of  the  gronnd,  and 
breathed  into  his  noetrili  the  breath  of  life;  and 
man  beeame  a  living  sonr'),  was  the  creation  of 
the  loul. 

If  other  evidence  of  the  nntoaaUeness  of  this 
notion  be  neooMary,  ire  have  it  abnndantl j  in  the 
gr«it  fact  of  the  Reinrrection,  where  onr  Bleiwd 

Lord  as  exemplar,  triumphantly  proves  the  indis- 
soluble union  of  body  and  soul,  not  only  in  this 
world,  but  in  the  risen  life  beyond  the  grave.  The 
resurrection  of  Christ,  who  is  our  Second  Adam, 
establishes  it  as  a  glorious  fact,  that  the  body,  so 
far  from  being  but  a  garment-like  covering  for  the 
soul,  and  one  which  is  to  be  abandoned  sooner  or 
later  for  another  similar  vesture,  is  itself  as 
immortal  as  the  soul.  Though  this  doctrine  of  the 
pre-existence  of  souls  does  not  belong  properly  to 
the  work  we  have  in  hand,  it  is  nevertheless,  per- 
haps as  well  to  have  it  before  us  in  the  exact 
light  in  which  the  Church  regards  it,  in  order  that 
it  may  serve  to  arrest  all  vagaries  in  that  direction ; 
for  nearly  everybody  has  at  one  time  or  anotlier 
entertained  himself  with  some  such  dreams. 


■OMS  fSATUBW  or  TKK  FAITH. 


33 


From  this  qiietti<m  we  advuioe  naturally  to 
anotlier  womemhat  akin  to  it^  and  whidi,  too,  after 
having  oooupied  to  a  large  extent  the  studies  of 
Chriitian  thinkers  in  tiie  past,  has  lost  much  of  the 
keen  edge  of  interest  for  us  of  to-day. 

That  any  true  part,  however  small,  of  Christ- 
ianityy  should  lose  its  interest  for  Christians  in 
any  age,  is  doubtless  a  fault,  not  in  tlio  thing  itself, 
but  in  those  who  are  capable  of  slighting  it. 

But  this  matter — as  to  whether  Adam  in  beget- 
ting children  transmitted  +o  them  a  soul  as  well  as 
a  hodj  —is  just  one  of  those  numerous  queries 
which  lie  on  tho  border-land  between  warrantable 
inquiry,  and  overdrawn  speculation :  between  what 
is  healthfully  and  reverently  within  our  reach, 
and,  what  Bishop  Butler  well  and  gently  calls,  a 
"speculation  for  which  we  have  no  talent." 

If  this  subject  in  its  essence  lies,  as  perhaps  it 
does,  on  tilie  right  side  of  the  line,  it  has  lost  in  our 
eyes  something  of  its  real  value  and  importance, 
from  the  fact  that  it  has  rarely  been  diwussed  on 
its  own  intrinsic  merits  ;  but  has  nearly  always 
been  brought  in  as  an  auxiliary  to  establish  some 
favorite  doctrine ;  and  thus  those  who  treat  it  are 
strongly  committed,  as  a  rule,  to  a  side,  and  unfit- 
ted to  be  its  impartial  judges.    This  in  all  fair- 


34  SOME  FEATUBKS  OF  THE  FAITH. 

ness  mitst  be  allowed  to  describe  Tertullian's  great 
treatment  of  the  subject ;  and,  later  on,  St.  Augus- 
tine's— the  one  grasping  at  it  as  a  bulwark  against 
the  heresy  of  a  pre-existing  soul,  as  taught  by  Mar- 
cion;  the  other  using  it  as  a  crushing  argument 
against  the  Pelagian  heresy — the  denial  of  the 
Church's  doctrine  of  Original  Sin. 

That  God  made  our  first  parents,  body  and 
•soul,  by  so  complete  an  act  of  creation  that  they 
possessed  within  themselves  the  power  to  repro- 
duce tlioniselves,  body  and  soul,  in  their  offspring 
— i*  tlio  doetriiio  or  side  of  this  subject,  known 
amongst  theologians  by  the  name  of  Traducianism. 
F  ,  The  opposite  view  to  this  is  called  Creatian- 
ism;  and  teaches  that,  whereas  the  body  is  sub- 
ject to  the  law  of  the  propagation  of  species,  and 
is  transmitted  by  generation  from  parents  to  chil- 
dren, the  soul  of  everj'  child  owes  its  existence  to  a 
direct,  special  act  of  the  Creator,  forming  an 
absolutely  new  manifestation  of  the  Divine  will. 

§  10. 

Each  of  these  two  conflicting  views  springs 
from  contemplating  man  from  but  a  single  side  of 
his  dual  nature.  Traducianism  sees  only  the  ani- 
mal in  man,  and  goes  altogether  on  animal  an- 
alogies ;  while  Creatianism  regards  him  as  a  spirit 


SOME  FEATURES  OF  THE  FAITH. 


35 


exclusively.  And  as  it  is  contrary  to  the  true  con- 
ception of  spirit  nature  to  imagine  it  as  subject  to 
the  gross  law  of  animal  reproduction,  it  asserts 
that  nothing  less  than  a  particular  and  special 
creative  act  of  God,  can  bring  an  immortal  spirit 
into  being. 

Now  it  cannot  need  much  demonstration  to  sat- 
isfy us  that  any  onesided  view  of  our  nature  is 
wrong ;  and  wrong  in  the  specious,  dangerous  way 
in  which  half-truths  always  err.  It  would  be  well 
if  we  could  always  have  this  friendly  hint  present 
to  our  minds;  if  those  of  us  who  know  it  to-day 
would  but  remember  it  to-morrow;  for  in  all  the 
wide  range  of  religion  and  theology,  there  is  not, 
and  has  not  been,  a  more  fertile  source  of  confu- 
sion and  disputation. 

The  solution  of  the  difficulty  presented  by  these 
two  opposing  views,  is  only  satisfactorily  effected 
by  uniting  them. 

As  an  animal,  though  the  highest,  noblest,  and 
most  perfect  of  all  animals,  every  child  is  depen- 
dent upon  its  parents  for,  and  owes  to  its  parents 
its  physical  being.  As  a  spirit,  and  the  Gk>d- 
nature  in  miniature  and  actual  commencement, 
every  child  is  indebted  to  G<xl  alone,  the  Father 
of  spirits,  for  its  imperishable  soul :  while  as  a 
person — ^the  union  of  both — these  essential  ele- 


36 


SOME  FEATUBES  OF  THE  FAITH. 


ments  interact  upon,  and  influence  each  Dther,  in  a 
manner  quite  beyond  our  ken  or  subtl^t  power 
of  setting  forth. 

Notwithstanding  the  fact  that  Traducianism 
savors  so  much  of  animalism,  and  goes  «»o  peril- 
ously near  to  Deism  (which  conceives  of  God  as 
having  taken  no  part  in  any  feature  of  creation  or 
providence  since  He  first  launched  the  universe 
into  being),  it  yet  has,  as  a  theory,  a  dignity  which 
comes  to  it  from  the  association  of  great,  even  the 
greatest  names  both  in  ancient  and  modern  times. 

§11. 

But  of  the  two  views,  judged  separately,  Crea- 
tianism  not  onlv  seems  to  be  more  in  accordance 
with  the  limited  grounds  Holy  Scripture  affords 
for  the  settlement  of  the  matter,  but  has  always 
been  favored  by  the  vast  majority  of  the  Christians 
of  all  ages. 

Tl.  '  objections  urged  against  it  are  not  very 
convincing.  That  it  contradicts  what  the  Word  of 
God  states  concerning  God's  rest  after  the  series 
of  creative  acts  recorded  in  the  first  chapter  of 
Genesis;  and  that  it  undermines  the  teaching  of 
the  Sabbath,  is  sufficiently  conibatted  and  nullified, 
by  the  universal  fixed  belief  of  Christians,  in  the 
daily  providence  of  God,  for  which,  the  petition  in 


SOME  FEATURES  OF  THE  FAITH.  37 

the  Lord's  Prayer — *'Givo  us  tliis  day  our  daily 
bread" — supplies  the  surest  kind  of  warranty.  Be- 
sides, it  elearly  proved,  that  since  the  creation  of 
tiie  world  and  of  man,  altt)gethcr  new  species  of 
animals  have  come  into  existence,  showing  that  the 
Creator  has  not  withheld  His  hand  from  even  this 
lower  sphere  of  activity. 

As  to  the  ohjection,  that  according  to  Creatian- 
ism,  the  adulterer's  act,  in  opposition  to  the  Divine 
will  and  commandment,  obliges  Gk>d  to  create  an 
immortal  soul;  it  is  acknowledged  that  this  is, 
without  controversy,  a  startling  feature  of  the  sin 
of  unchastity,  and  yet  even  this  sin  could  not  be 
committed  except  by  God's  permission.  Permit- 
ting sin  in  any  form  or  degree  to  exist,  it  is  not  in- 
conceivable that  the  Almighty  should,  now  and 
then,  as  here,  show  us  the  enormity  of  the  draft 
it  makes  upon  Divine  patience. 

§12. 

It  is  also  said  against  Creatianism,  that  since 
it  makes  each  soul  to  ho  a  separate,  distinct  and 
altogether  new  manifestation  of  the  Divine  will — 
'  fresh  creation  from  the  hands  of  God — it  offends 
against  the  Catholic  doctrine  of  Original  Sin ;  or 
else,  if  it  do  not,  it  is  guilty  of  the  graver  ofifence 
of  attributing  to  Qod  the  creation  of  a  thing  in 


38  SOME  FSATUBES  OF  THE  FAITH. 


itself  essentially  siufiil.  But  the  Church's  teach- 
ing of  Original  Sin  does  not  encourage  the  notion 
that  the  soul  is  an  unsympathetic  tenant  of  the 
body,  or  that  it  is  uninfluenced  \ty  the  body.  The 
soul  may,  indeed,  be  a  clear  ray  of  light,  so  to 
speak,  proceeding  from  the  throne  of  Gof\,  but  it 
may  have  blended  with  it  a  tint  emanating  from 
its  physical  organism,  a  shade  which  past  history 
can  possibly  explain,  and  which  colors  all  objects, 
more  or  less,  that  are  presented  to  it. 

Adam,  as  he  stood  forth  from  the  creating 
hand  of  God,  though  possessing  unbiased  freedom 
to  proceed  along  his  course  of  Godward  develop- 
ment, took  the  momentous  step  in  the  opposite 
direction,  which  destroyed  the  original  relation- 
ship existing  between  soul  and  body,  and  gave  to 
the  latter  a  prominence  and  a  force  that  did  not 
belong  to  it,  thus  destroying  the  Divine  adjustment 
of  the  component  parts  of  man's  nature. 

If  Adam  then,  under  the  fairest  circumstances 
and  without  a  single  discord  ringing  in  his  being, 
was  overcome  by  the  lower  of  the  two  principles 

(called  by  theologians  the  Cosmical  and  the  Spir- 
itual) that  should  have  maintained  their  holy  and 
proper  balance  in  him;  how  shall  any  child  of 
Adam,  inheriting  a  nature  in  which  this  downward 
tendency  is  propagated,  give  promise  of  better 


SOME  FEATURES  OF  THE  FAITH. 


39 


things?  And,  failing  thus  to  give  such  promise, 
shall  we  lay  the  blame  impiously  upon  the 
Creator  ? 

It  is  the  defect  of  the  due  subordination  of  the 
lower  to  the  higher  phase  of  our  nature,  the  wrench 
which  Adam's  fatal  act  gave  to  the  balanced 
mechanism  of  our  being — the  adjustment  by  our 

first  parents,  as  opposed  to  the  adjustment  effected 
by  God — whidi  makes  every  child  born  into  the 
world  so  unworthy  of  the  Creatorship  and  Father- 
hood of  God.  This  is  the  Church's  doctrine  of 
Original  Sin,  and  this  is  not  impaired  by  the  show- 
ing of  Creatianism;  for  neither  the  soul  nor  the 
body  is  of  itself  the  man.  Nothing  less  than  the 
union  of  both  makes  the  person,  the  man;  and 
in  this  unity,  this  person,  the  defect  lies. 

Each  person  is  thus,  at  birth,  defective;  and 
incapable,  in  a  way  that  Adam  himself  was  not 
originally  incapable,  of  attaining  to  his  destined 
goal.  But  this  blight  does  not  j  .rst  sully  the 
soul.  It  hampers  and  thwarts  it,  and  only  grad- 
ually oven  onies  it.  The  new-created,  uninherited 
part  may  liioreforc,  at  birth,  be  stainless;  and  yet 
at  the  same  time  the  sum  of  the  pa  '^^s — the  person 
— ^may  be  a  thing  of  sin. 

§13. 

If  it  is  permitted  us  to  reverently  se^  for 
God's  reasons  for  creating  man,  it  may  be  said 


40  SOME  FEATUBES  OF  THE  FAITH. 

without  undue  pretensions  to  knowledge  of  so  high 
a  matter,  that  it  is  contrary  to  His  nature  to  be 
alone.  He  would  have  about  Him,  admitted 
to  His  presence,  and  blest  by  a  promise  of  union 
with  Himself,  those  fitted  to  appreciate  His  acts, 
and  to  oopv  them  (the  most  robust  praise)  to  the 
limits  of  their  powe  -s.  Here  is  the  rm$on  d'etre 
for  man's  existence — ^this  and  the  prospect  of  our 
prt^ressive  felicity — a  reason  and  purpose  in  keep- 
ing with  His  own  revelation  of  Himself  to  us, 
with  the  unfailing  providraces  of  nature  in  their 
prodigal  ministry  to  human  wants,  and  with  the 
invitation  to  which  all  that  is  sound  and  good 
within  us  responds,  to  make  our  home  (even  while 
our  feet  rest  on  this  green  earth)  in  the  very  bosom 
of  God. 


CHAPTER  III. 


THE  FAI^L. 

§14. 

E  SHALL  expend  no  time  in  trying  to 
fathom  the  mystry  of  the  origin  of  evil ;  nor 
spin  any  web  of  speculation  over  the  blank  void 
which  here  meets  us. 

There  are  not  wanting  many  such  ing^uities, 
but  thej  only  serve  to  make  our  ignorance  the  more 
apparent  The  silence  of  H0I7  Scripture  on  this 
subject  is  voiceful  enough  to  those  who  are  in 
earnest.  It  brings  home  to  the  souls  of  devoutly 
inquiring  men,  the  fact  that  this  knowledge  would 
be  but  a  useless  encumbrance,  serving  only  to 
flivert  our  attention  from  its  one  legitimate  object, 
which  is,  not  the  origin  of,  but  the  remedy  for  evil. 

Tt  reqiiires  but  a  glance  at  the  Word  of  God  to 
see  tliat  it  is  composed  of  no  promiscuous  heap  of 
knowledge  aimlessly  thrown  tether.  A  grand 
desi^  is  discernible  in  it,  which  is  all  the  more 


42 


80MX  FEATURES  OF  THE  FAITH. 


forcibly  impressed  upon  the  reader  of  the  Bible, 
by  the  striking  absence  of  other  order,  and  of  all 
literarv  form. 

That  design,  -vvhieh  nobody  can  fail  to  notice, 
is  a  great  evidence  of  the  Divineness  of  the  Bible. 

Into  that  design,  however,  enlightenment  as  to 
the  ^nesis  of  evil  does  not  enter ;  and  no  one  who 
possesses  any  just  conception  of  the  true  character 
and  office  of  Holy  Scripture,  can  help  feeling,  that 
if  it  did  so  enter,  such  enlightenment  would  be 
a  lamentable  declension  from  the  true  attitude  of  a 
revelation  from  God  the  Father  to  His  lost,  sinful 
children;  an  unaccountable  turning  aside  of  the 
compass-needle  of  inspiration;  and  a  veritable 
bathos,  expressive  more  of  human  than  of  Divine 
workmanship.  When  we  see,  as  we  cannot  help 
seeing,  the  significance  that  is  to  he  attached  to  the 
silence  of  Holy  Scripture  regarding  the  entrance 
of  evil  into  the  world,  it  is  surely  an  undertaking 
marked  by  no  conspicuous  prudence,  to  attempt, 
with  the  history  of  past  efforts  before  us,  to  con- 
struct any  tower  of  Babel,  with  which  to  supple- 
ment the  imperfect  f uhu     >f  Holy  Writ. 

The  fall  of  man  is  so  tremendous  a  fact,  and 
so  thoroughly  endorsed  by  all  human  experience, 
that  man,  alive  to  his  true  inter^ts,  can  hardly 
be  thought  so  wanting  in  seriousness  as  to  waste 


SOME  FSATUBE8  OF  THE  FAITH.  43 

liis  fleeting  time  in  continuous  and  hopeless  guesses 
as  to  how  this  dread  reality  could  have  had  its 
coninicneenient.  , 

All  wise  and  telling  investigation  begins  with 
the  existence  of  evil.  This  is  the  starting  point 
of  the  Scriptures  themselves;  and  without  going 
any  further  back,  the  distance  from  this  point  to 
our  true  goal  is  sufficiently  great  for  our  allotted 
three-score-years-and-ten  to  compass. 

Men  lost  in  '  mine  or  other  subterranean  pas- 
sage had  better  (and  in  any  rational,  respectful 
conception  of  them  they  would)  lose  no  time  in 
wild  speculating  on  the  probable  causes  of  the  sur- 
rounding and  perilous  darkness,  but  would  turn 
their  whole  attention  in  the  direction  from  which 
they  hoped  for  a  ray  of  light,  and  the  promise  of 
rescue.* 

§15. 

We  have  seen  that  Adam  in  Paradise  was  not 
endowed  with  a  perfection,  attained,  as  it  must 
have  been  if  possessed,  without  any  effort  on  his 
part.  A  perfection  thus  unwon,  would  have  left 
him  no  race  to  run,  no  development  to  achieve; 
hardly  would  it  have  left  him  the  power  of  volun- 
tary obedience.  The  real  perfection  which  we 
must  attribute  to  him  was  one,  not  of  attainment, 

•  Nott  c. 


44 


SOME  F£ATVBXS  OF  THE  FAITH. 


but  of  equipment.  In  a  word,  instead  of  being  en- 
dowed with  perfection,  he  was  given  the  where- 
M'ithal  to  attain  that  perfection. 

He  :od  only  on  the  threshold  of  his  career. 
Paradise  was  Paradise  by  reason  of  the  large  pos- 
sibilities which  it  unbosomed  to  our  first  parents. 
God  gave  to  man  the  gift  of  existence — humanity 
in  a  rudimentary  condition — ^not  in  a  state  of  com- 
pletenesg.  The  ideal  of  man  is  not  satisfied  by 
conceiving  of  him  as  merely  holding  on  to  life, 
retaining  a  foothold  in  Paradise.  Something  is 
to  be  achieved.  Life  is  a  talent  committed  to  him 
of  which  he  must  make  the  most.  His  destiny  and 
full  glory  are  not  present  things.  Adam's  is  not 
the  rounded  maturity  of  the  full-grown  oak,  but 
rather  the  inspiring  promise  of  this,  which  lies  in 
the  acorn,  if  an  illustration  from  the  world  of 
nature  may  be  used  of  the  soul. 

Entering  on  existence  with  a  nature  dulv  bal- 
anced  between  heaven  and  earth — between  the 
spiritual  and  the  natural— man's  course  lies  on- 
ward and  upward,  where  along  the  path  of  holy 
obedience  his  true  goal  is  reached. 

But  the  heavy  attribute  of  free-will  makes  the 
opposite  to  this  also  possible.  Adam  may  move 
either  forward  or  backward,  towards  God  or  to- 
wards the  mere  animal,  for  he  is  a  oomponnd  of 


•SOilK  KKATI  KKS  OK  TIIK  FAITH. 


45 


both.  It  19  possible  for  him,  like  (Christ,  so  to  live 
as  to  (sec  Appendix  4)  spiritualize  his  body,  and 
exalt  it  into  the  sphere  of  spirits;  and  it  is 
also  possible  for  him  so  to  live  as  to  degrade 
and  debase  his  complex  nature  into  a  rivalry 
of  the  brutes.  Of  these  two  courses,  the  one 
18  a  true  and  nonnal,  the  other  an  abnormal 
and  false  development.  The  divine  plan,  upon 
which  Adam  was  formed,  laid  down  every  detail  of 
preparation  necessary  for  his  life  purpose ;  but  to 
put  all  this  into  motion,  is  the  part  left  for  man's 
own  proper  act 

The  two  factors — God  and  the  animal — are  not 

more  truly  present  in  man,  than  is  the  conscious- 
ness of  the  two  aspects  of  his  position  wb.ich  these 
offer  to  him.  On  the  one  hand,  all  is  God,  God 
the  source  and  God  the  end  of  all  things;  and  man 
is  but  as  a  mote  in  the  imiversal  sunshine,  though 
a  mote  consciously  akin  to  that  space-tilling  Pres- 
ence. While  there  is  present  glory  for  man  here 
in  his  sense  of  affinity  with  Qod,  the  contrast  be- 
tween the  immensity  of  God  and  the  infinitesimal 
littleness  of  man,  mak^  man's  true  attitude,  even 
though  he  is  buoyed  with  the  hope  of  fuller,  richer, 
more  abundant  life,  an  attitude  of  humility. 

Growth  (and  it  would  seem  that  as  long  as 
there  is  anytiung  material  in  man  this  must  be  the 


46  BOUM  FEATUBSS  OF  THB  FAITH. 

law  which  gowrns  him),  ordorly  growth,  is  the 
process  by  which  glory  is  presented  to  man  :  attain- 
ment only  through  a  course  of  ever-increasing  de- 
velopment For  it  is  necessary  that  man,  to  be 
the  niler  of  all  created  existences,  should  first 
learn  to  govern  himself. 

§16. 

On  the  other  hand,  the  prosi)ect  shows  man  as 
himself  supreme,  and  all  creatures  doing  him 
homage;  a  monarch,  indeed,  and  such  by  Divine 
rifrlit.    Nothing  is  there  in  his  wide  realm  rrith 
will*  h  ho  may  stoop  to  confer.    Everything  about 
him  j)roclaims  its  inferiority  to  himself.  On 
every  liand  tlironghont  the  ample  extent  of  his  em- 
pire, all  that  meets  his  eye,  speaks  by  flattering 
contrast  of  his  own  exaltation.    All  Creation 
seems  united  in  a  deep  conspiracy  to  swell  the 
glory  of  human  sovereignty. 

Between  these  two  spheres,  therefore,  man  is 
called  to  hold  his  even,  righteous  way.  There  is 
mnch  need  for  caution.  Dependency  in  the  spir- 
itual world  balances  supremacy  over  all  flesh. 
Such  is  the  double  aspect  without,  which  corre- 
sponds with  the  (h;al  .  dii  -Ise  of  man  within.  And 
such  is  man  as  made  in  the  image  of  God,  that  he 
can  behold  this  two-si,i,  ,;  j.i.-iure  without  sin,  the 
contemplation  of  ahich  has  not  the  nature  of  sin; 


SOME  FKATt'REX  OF  TIIK  I  A  ITU. 


47 


fur  the  due  lia^ ai(»nious  relationshi,  of  these 
^{•lieres,  tli(>  ..iie  to  tlie  other,  is  whu.  .  fitted 
man  with  faculties  ii«h'(niatel_\  to  perix'tuate. 

Ihir  eoiif('iM|)hui(Mi  is  nut  MutHeieut  of  itself  to 
effect  man's  free  !»elf-»ie\eh>iniient. 

This  peerlew  being  must  be  brought  witiiin  the 
range  of  temptation.  "And  the  Lord  God  e<.ni 
manded  the  man  saying,  of  every  true  of  the  gar- 
den thou  mayest  freely  eat,  bat  of  the  tree  of  the 
knowledge  of  good  and  eril  thou  shalt  not  eat  of 
it,  for  in  the  day  that  thou  eatest  thereof  thou  ahalt 
surely  die"  (Gen.  ii.  16-17). 

g  IT. 

And  now  appears  on  the  scene  that  mysterious 

heiiig,  the  serpent,  whom  St.  John  identifies  with 
the  Devil  ( liov.  xii.  <»).  The  work  of  tliis  evil 
<'iie  is  Ix'cun  hy  first  insinuating  doubt — "Yea 
hath  God  said  r  and  -Yi^  sliall  not  surely  die," 
as  preparatorv  to  the  masterstroke  which  imme- 
diately foHows  in  that  very  deadly  form  which 
falsehood  may  be  made  to  wear— an  ovrrstate- 
ment:  "Ye  shall  be  as  gods,"  that  is,  ye  shall  at- 
tain to  the  highest  pitch  and  perfection  of  your 
develi^ent,  a  shorter  route  than  that  of  wait- 
ing through  a  tedious,  indefinite  period  for  it. 
How  much  more  seemly  that  the  sublime  ruler  of 


*S  SOME  FEATURES  OF  THE  FAITH. 

the  earth  and  all  that  is  tlierein,  should  not  be 
forced  to  undergo  the  same  natural,  maturing  pro- 
cess which  is  common  to  the  lowest  forms  of  life, 
but  should  thus  spring  at  one  bound  into  unap- 
proachable supremacy— into  deity  I    This  expan- 
sion of  thr  brief,  succinct  account  of  the  temptation 
given  in  Genesis,  with  the  first  Adam  as  the  cen- 
tral figure,  shows  it  strictly  analogous  to  the  temp- 
tation oflforcfl  to  our  Lord  (the  second  Adam)  in 
tlie  wilderness.    "Again  the  Devil  taketh  Him  up 
into  an  exceeding  high  mountain,  and  showeth 
Him  all  the  kingdomt^  of  the  world  and  the  glory 
of  them,  and  saith  unto  Him,  All  these  things  will 
I  give  Thee,  if  Thou  wilt  fall  down  and  worship 
me"  (Matt.  iv.  8,  9).    In  both  cases  the  attack 
was  made  at  the  outset  of  the  career.    In  both 
eases  the  temptation  is  to  anticipate  and  overreach 
the  legitimate  process  of  attainment— to  grasp  at 
the  ]mze  before  the  race  is  begim— and  to  hold  it 
in  the  Devil's  name,  or,  failing  this,  in  man's  own 
or  ajiy  name,  but  not  to  hold  it  of  God. 

To  have  perceived,  to  have  appreciated,  assim- 
ihitcd,  and  made  liis  own,  tlie  supreme,  beneficent 
will  of  the  Creator,  was  for  Adam  to  have  put  all 
the  noble  energies  of  his  new  being  into  fresh  play, 
and  to  have  succeeded.  This  he  did  not  do;  but 
with  his  commission  fresh  upon  him  to  subdue 


SOME  FKATURE8  OF  THE  FAITH. 


49 


the  world,  i^ermitted  himself  to  be  subdued  by  the 
world.  Created,  as  we  have  said,  with  a  nature 
eompounded  of  kinship  with  the  world  beneath 
him,  and  with  God  above  him,  the  normal  eourse 
of  his  activity  lay  in  his  btnng  to  the  world  what 
God  was  to  him ;  in  a  word,  in  his  lx?ing  himself, 
with  his  uncreated  part  dominating  the  world- 
sympathies  within  him. 

§18. 

All  that  we  can  make  of  the  rest,  the  proeess 
by  which  this  awful  step  was  determined,  is  that 
Eve,  overpowered  by  that  mysterious  being,  the 
serpent,  threw  the  full  vast  weight  of  her  captive 
reason  into  the  scales,  along  with  Adam's  own 
temptation  towards  absolute  mlership  (lyingly 
..ffered) ;  and  thus  was  effected  the  overthrow  of 
God's  image  in  man. 

Th(>  inspired  story  of  num's  fall,  relating  as  it 
does  to  that  dim  verg(>  between  wlmt  we  nni  know, 
and  what  we  eannot  quite  grasp  or  liiivc  adeciuate 
realization  of,  fittingly  jtresents  its  wcjolitv  faets 
softened  down  to  our  eajtaeity  l>y  an  instructive 
symbolism. 

Of  this  symbolism,  the  fruit  of  the  forbidden 
tree,  the  fruit  which  Adam  ate,  thus  signifies  the 
attractiveness  of  the  world  in  its  false  iudtJixM:.!- 


50 


SOME  FEATVBES  OF  TUB  FAITH. 


euce  of  God,  the  desirable  presenting  itself  to  man, 
without  any  mention  of  whence  it  comes,  or  of 
the  hand  that  bestows  it;  without  any  i«ference 
or  acknowledgment  to  God. 

§19. 

Bodily  hunger  was  not  the  impelling  force 
which  urged  Adam  to  his  impious  act. 

The  fair,  flattering  promise  which  the  fruit, 
and  the  interpretation  put  upon  it  by  the  serpent, 
gHvc  to  tlio  part  of  Adam's  nature  most  susceptible 
to  such  seduction,  namely,  "to  be  as  gods,"— su- 
pivnio  lulcrship  in  his  own  right— this  was  the 
true  cause. 

Tlie  figure  of  (>ating  shows  that  "the  knowl- 
edge of  good  and  evil"  signifies  more  than  the 
comprehension  of  the  fact  that  good  has  its  oppo- 
site. 

A  figure  which  embodied,  for  example,  the  act 
of  looking,  would  have  been  strong  enough  for 
this;  hut  "eating"  emphatically  means  appropria- 
tion, tlie  taking  into  the  system  of  the  thing,  here 

the  experiencing  of  the  evil. 

To  have  had  tlie  knowledge  of  good  and  evil 
as  nn  intellectual  parallel  to  the  consciousness  of 
the  difference  l)etween  the  meanings  of  the  words 
MiK'k  mul  white,  was  not  to  have  forfeited  Par- 


SOME  FEATURES  OF  VIIE  FAITH. 


51 


adise.  But  to  have  voluntarily  cast  away  the 
Go<l\viird  prospect,  the  first,  too,  that  gave  impress 
to  nascent  linnianity,  and  gave  it  on  the  warranty 
uf  (.nmipotence;  and  to  have  filled  the  void  thus 
made  with  a  foreign,  unattested  hope ;  to  have  de- 
stroyed the  bridge  which  the  Almighty's  own  hands 
had  reared,  and  by  which  created  existence  was 
to  pass  over  into  God;  and  in  its  e^ad  to  have 
trusted  his  wei^t,  and  thereby  the  dertiny  of  the 
generations  of  all  time  to  the  airy  fabric  of  a  lie — 
this  constituted  Adam's  fall. 

Seduced,  man  certainly  was,  and  with  stu- 
•ndous  guile;  the  less  reasoning  woman  first 
ained  over,  and  then  become  a  propagandist  of  the 
new  tiling,  not  immediately  to  the  righteous  judg- 
iiK  lit  of  the  man,  but  by  her  very  nature,  medi- 
ately, through  his  affections,  she,  the  least  likely 
of  all  possible  agents  to  arouse  suspicion  (for  she 
was  God's  gift),  leads,  herself  first  led,  man  to 
his  undoing. 

§20. 

Yet  when  all  this  lias  been  said,  the  great  fact 
rt  iiiains  that  Adam  was  consciously,  willingly  se- 
•lucetl,  and  therein  lay  his  sin. 

The  sin  of  our  first  parents,  although  unparal- 
leled, yet  since  it  was  of  the  nature  of  a  seduction, 
was  i-egarded  with  full  cognizance  of  this  aspect 


52 


SOME  FEATURES  OF  THE  FAITH. 


by  our  Blessed  Lord  and  Redeemer,  as  shown  in 
His  ever  present  compassion  for  our  sin-laden  na- 
ture.   ''And  when  He  was  come  near,  He  beheld 
the  city  and  wept  over  it."    Are  we  not  permitted 
to  notice  this,  too,  in  the  absence  of  questions  put 
to  the  sinful  afflicted,  and  in  the  enfolding  of  the 
more  and  the  less  unworthy  sufferers  in  one  mag- 
nanimous sympathy  ?   All  this  has  been  well  gath- 
ered and  nobly  uttered  by  the  poet : 

"God  tlM  Fatber  :— 

"   •    •    •  thennelres  ordained  their  fan 

The  flnt  Mrt  by  their  own  suggestion  fell. 
Mf-tempted.  aelf-depraved ;  Man  falls  deceived 
By  the  other  first ;  man  therefore  shall  find  grace. 
The  other  aoae : 
"God  the  Son  : — 

■   ■   '  liniiiiy  be  lost?  Should  Man 

Thy  creature  late  so  lov  d.  Thy  youngest  son 
Fall  circumvented  thus  by  frand.  though  Joioed 
With  his  own  follv  V 
"God  the  Father  :— " 

"    .    .    .    Man  shall  not  quite  he  lost,  but  aaved  who  will  • 
Yet  not  of  will  in  him.  but  grace  in  Me  ' 
Freely  vouchsaf't.    Once  more  I  will  renew 
His  lapsed  power,  though  forfeit  and  enthrali'd 
By  sin  to  foul,  exorbitant  deairea : 
Upheld  by  Me  yet  once  more  he  shall  stand 
On  even  ground  against  his  mortal  foe : 
By  Me  upheld,  that  he  may  Icnow  how  fi-all 
His  fall'n  condition  Is,  and  to  Me  owe 
All  his  dellT'rance,  and  to  none  but  Me."* 

Though  the  mercy  of  God  recognizes  this  fea- 
ture of  the  case,  it  can  only  be  to  fan  religious  hope 
in  our  breasts.    Xo  healthy  mind  can  ever  be  iu- 


*  Milton. 


SOMK  I'KATI  KKS  OK  THK  KAITII. 


53 


ilnccii  to  soften  down  the  inherent  malignancy 
of  an  oflFeneo,  which  nothing  \v»s  than  the  life-blood 
of  incarnate  God  eonid  niako  rijrht. 

§21. 

The  way  in  which  the  generations  of  all  time 
iiiid  we  individually  are  affected  by  this  tran^res- 
sion,  is  a  matter  of  the  first  moment. 

A  popular  conception  of  man's  fall  in  the  per- 
son of  Adam,  as  it  regards  caeli  and  every  member 
"f  the  race,  is  that  wo,  coilectivoK-  and  personally, 
are  held  accountable  for  Adam's  sin. 

Thoiigh  there  is  something  on  the  face  of  it  un- 
satisfactory in  this  idea,  yet  it  is  to  be  feared  it  is 
but  too  generally  believed  that  Adam's  awful  act 
is  imputed  to  us,  each  and  all.  There  are  but 
two  ways,  neither  of  them  creditable,  in  which 
such  a  notion  may  mainta^i.  its  existence  amongst 
us,  and  propagate  itself :  the  one  by  a  misooncep- 
lion  nf  the  nature  and  attributes  of  God,  such  as 
could  represent  Him  as  all  powerful  and  therefore 
idxtve  and  indifferent  to  the  law  of  righteousness; 
the  other,  by  an  intelleetnal  and  spiritual  negli- 
li'  iice.  which  has  never  given  the  matter  thought 
siitticienf  to  settle  the  difficulty,  not  enough  thought 
p«Tlia})s  to  reveal  the  fact  that  there  is  any  diffi- 
culty in  the  acceptance  of  this  figment. 


M  SOME  FEATURES  OF  THE  FAITH. 

Here  let  us  lay  bare  the  veiy  real  diiBeiilty, 
as  it  lies  all  unsettled  in  the  mind  of  the  ordi- 
nary church-goer. 

That  away,  far  back  in  the  dim  distance  of 
time,  across  the  wide  chasm  of  thousands  of  years, 
a  man,  tiie  first  of  the  race — a  kind  of  remote 
ancestor  of  on rs— committed  a  sin ;  and  that  we  of 
to-day,  men  and  women  seeking  to  straighten  out 
onr  eternal  acconnts  with  our  God  and  Creator, 
have  not  only  to  answer  for  onr  own  evil  deeds, 
numerous  as  they  are,  but  have  also  to  confess,  to 
feel  Ijowed  d..wn  nnder,  and  to  seek  pardon  for, 
this  great,  anci^-jt  wrong-doing  of  the  first  man 
(an  offence,  the  temptation  to  which  we  never  had 
any  opportunity  of  resisting,  and  one  whose  com- 
mission we  may  even  deeply  deplore)  ;  this  surely 
is  a  conception  of  Christian  belief  which  it  would 
be  difficult  to  defend  as  being  a  representation  of 
the  justice  of  God,  anything  less  than  repugnant 
to  the  Holy  Scriptures— "The  fathers  shall  not 
be  put  to  death  for  the  children,  neither  shall  the 
children  be  put  to  death  for  the  fathers;  every 
man  shall  be  put  to  death  for  his  own  sin"  (Deut. 
xxiv.  16;  also  U.  Kings  xiv.  6;  Ezek.  xviii.  20). 
It  certainly  forms  no  part  of  the  teaching  of  the 
Church. 


SOMB  VXATCBXg  OF  THB  FAITH. 


55 


§22. 

To  impute  an  absent  sin  to  us,  to  lay  upon  us 
gailt  where  Uiere  has  been  no  sin,  is  plainly  a  thing 
that  God  in  His  righteowanege  cannot  do.  This, 
then,  is  not,  and  cannot  be,  the  effect  that  reaches 
to  us  from  the  sin  which  lost  Paradise  to  our  first 
parents. 

On  the  other  hand,  that  the  sin  of  Adam  only 
hurt  himself,  and  not  all  mankind;  that  infants 
new  Iwrn  are  in  the  ^ame  state  as  Adam  was  before 
his  fall ;  that  a  man  may  still  be  without  sin  before 
God,  and  keep  God's  Commandments  to  the  letter 
if  he  will — this  conception  is  so  far  from  being 
unknown  and  untaught  in  our  own  times,  that 
there  are  sects  of  religious  people  who  make  it 
almost  their  chief  article  of  belief. 

But  notwithstanding  the  modem  names  of 
these  religious  societies,  their  distinctive  doctrine 
is  an  ancient  heresy,  which  was  emphatically  con- 
demned by  the  undivided  Church  in  Council  as 
long  ago  as  the  early  part  of  the  fifth  century. 

§23. 

A  Briton  named  Morgan,  known  in  the  learned 
world  by  the  Latin  equivalent,  Pelagius,  and  one 
Crlostiu.,  a  Briton  also,  went  forth  from  their 
own  land  at  the  dawn  of  the  fifth  century,  as 


56 


•OME  FEATURES  OF  THE  FAITH. 


preachers  of  this  doctrine,  and  soon  succeeded  in 
disturbing  the  whole  of  Christendom.  Rome, 
Africa,  and  Palestine  were  visited  by  the  zealoua 
missionaries.    Africa,  under  the  strong  leadership 
of  Augustine,  Bishop  of  Hippo,  repudiated  the 
cold  novelties,  and  the  teachers  were  followed  to 
Palestine,  where  they  were  arraigned  before  a 
Bvnod  of  fourteen  Bishops  at  Diospolis,  the  ancient 
Lydda.    Here  the  clever,  dialectic  sldU  and  learn- 
ing of  Pelagius,  who  alone  understood  both  the 
language  of  his  accusers  and  that  of  his  judges,  is 
said  to  have  imposed  upon  the  fathers  and  secured 
his  acquittal.    This  trial,  carried  on  as  it  must 
have  been  by  the  unsatisfactory  means  of  inter- 
preters, cannot  be  given  much  weight;  but  it 
opposed  the  judgment  of  the  Bishops  of  the  East 
to  that  of  the  Africans. 

As  a  Western  monk,  Pelagius,  it  was  discov- 
ered, was  amenable  to  the  Bishop  of  Rome,  to 
whom  it  was  agreed  by  the  two  Churehes  to  leave 
the  settlement. 

Pope  Innocent  T.  condemned  Pelagius,  and 
shortly  afterward  died.    He  was  succeeded  in.  the 

pontifical  office  by  Zosimus. 

Pope  Zosimus,  after  due  deliberation  of  this 
important  matter,  which  was  still  at  fever-heat, 
proceeded  (strangely  enough  it  would  seem  to  us 
of  this  generation)  to  annul  at  a  single  blow,  ex 


SOME  FKATUKE8  OP  THE  FAITB. 


57 


calhedm,  all  the  jiidgmente  of  his  predecessor,  In- 
TKKjent  I.,  and  absolved  Pelagius  and  Celestius.  A 
^jleniii  review  of  the  case  was  appointed  in  the 
JJjisilicji  «f  St.  Clement. 

The  ucf'iiscrs  of  the  two  "persecuted"  teachers 
wen"  hrandod  as  vagabonds,  sowers  of  strife  and 
.itlniimv,   wherever  they  went.    Zosimus  went 
tiirtlur,  and  crushed  the  opponents  ui  IVIagiiis 
and  his  friend,  by  contrasting  thoni  with  the  un- 
inii)eachable  personages,  Pelagius  and  Celestius, 
whom  they  would  injure.    Africa  and  St.  Augus- 
tine, however,  still  continued  to  vigorously  arraign 
the  new  doctrines,  and  treat  contemptuously  the 
Pope's  decree.    Augustine's  language  was  suffi- 
ciently politic  to  Zosimus,  but  yet  it  contained  a 
plain  charge  of  prevarication  against  the  whole 
Konian  clergy.    Augustine  now  dropped  argu- 
ment and  used  force.    He  reached  over  the  head  of 
the  Bishop  or  Pope  of  Rome,  and  drew  to  his  aid 
the  supreme  earthly  power. 

The  Emperor,  as  head  of  the  State  and  of  all 
it  <M)ntained  (the  Church  amongst  the  rest),  de- 
cided the  question  against  Pelagius  in  a  law  issued 
April  30th,  418,  A.  D. 

A  few  days  later,  in  May,  the  Council  of 
Carthage  was  convened,  when  two  hundred  and 
twenty-three  Bishops  gave  conciliar  authority  to 
the  Emperor's  decision.    The  dangerous  hereai- 


68 


80MK  FEATUBE8  OF  TUB  FAITH. 


archs  were  condemned  by  name,  in  eight  eanons; 
and  the  law,  without  hearing  or  trial,  inflicted  ban- 
ishment from  Borne. 

§24. 

And  now,  we  of  to-dav  Avho  are  familiar  with 
our  own  Manning's  life-work,   find  ourselves 
anxiona  about  the  way  Infallibility  fared  in  this 
splendid  trial  of  its  reality.    But,  alas!  for  the 
majesty  of  the  conception!    Pope  Zosimus  pro- 
ceeded at  once  to  reverse  all  his  own  courageous 
decisions  which  condemned  his  predecessor,  Inno- 
cent I.,  and  once  again,  ex  cathedra,  delivered  his 
pronouncement.    But  this  time  it  was  to  anathe- 
matize Pelagius  and  CVlesfins,  and  to  excommuni- 
cate them  from  the  body  of  the  faithful,  if  thev  did 
not  "renounce  and  abjure  the  venomous  tenets  of 
their  impious  and  abominable  sect." 

Thus  the  Holy  Spirit,  alone  infallible,  made 
truth  to  shine  forth  from  amid  human  weakness 
and  error. 

Even  Augustine,  who,  under  God,  was  the 
chief  cause  of  the  triumph  of  truth  against  the 
errors  of  Pelagius,  advanced  to  his  grasp  of  this 
tnith  through  a  process  of  reasoning  which  we 

must  decline  to  adopt. 

Augustine  was  not  content  to  assert  Original 
Sin,  in  the  strongest  language,  against  Pelagius; 


•OMB  rxATinues  of  thb  faith.  59 

but  did  not  sernple  to  dogmatize  as  to  the  mode  of 
its  tranamiwioii.  Thii  wu  by  sexual  intercourse, 
which,  he  aaaerta  (in  argnmentt  whidi  the  modesty 
of  our  manners  in  this  day  will  not  permit  us  to 

discuss),  would  have  been  unknown  but  for  the 
Fall ;  and  was  itself  essentially  evil,  though  an  evil 
to  be  tolerated  in  the  regenerate,  for  the  procrea- 
tion of  children,  tliemselves  to  be  regenerate. 

This  great  heathen,  oriental  principle  of  the 
inherent  evil  of  matter,  was  the  dominant  and 
fundamental  tenet  of  Gnosticism ;  it  lay  at  the  root 
of  Arianism  (the  denial  of  the  Saviour's  God- 
head), appeared  later  on  as  the  remote  parent  of 
Nestorianism ;  and  still  produces  in  our  own  midst 
its  harvest  of  emotional,  body-contemning  sects. 

This  was  the  primary  axiom  of  all  Monastic- 
ism,  and  so  became  almost  imperceptibly  the  first 
recognized  princij  le  of  all  Roman  theology. 

§25. 

Augustine,  in  this  theory  of  the  transmission 
of  sin,  betrays  that  invincible  horror  of  the  in- 
trinsic evil  of  the  material  and  corporeal,  which 
had  been  infused  into  his  mind  by  his  youthful 
Manidieanism. 

''Notwithatanding  all  his  concessions  on  the 
dignity  of  marriage,"  says  Dean  Milman,  "Au- 
gustine is  in  this  respect  an  irreclaimable  Man- 


90 


HOME  PKATDMBS  OF  THE  FAITH. 


iohfan."  ?-  Hiso  l  St.  Augustine  that  basis 

of  TrHducianism  to  which  x^eronoe  has  been  nade 
above. 

With  regard,  then,  to  the  maniu  i-  m  which  the 
sin  of  Adam  affects  each  of  ua,  the  Church  has 
decided  that  the  sia  of  Adam  did  nut  only  hurt 
himself,  hot  affected  and  aieeta  all  numkiad. 

That  infants^  new  bom,  are  not  in  the  same 
»tat(  as  Adam  was  before  tlie  Fall. 

And  that  a  man  cannot  be  without  sin  if  he  bol 
wills  to  be;  and  cannot  po^^ibly,  without  any  h^p 
from  God,  keep  all  God's  Commandments. 

To  establish  this*  position  we  are  not  driven  cm 
the  rocks  of  Auguatinianism,  or  more  properlj 
Manieheanism. 


CSAPTER  IV. 


OSUG     AL  SIK. 


m  F  IfAVE  alrea.iv  largely  anticipated  the  sub- 
w  }r  t  oi  Ongiiial  Sin  when  discussing  the  pro- 
^  W  wht«A  ^  sotti  omies  into  existence.  This 
as  hardlx  iv^ble,  as  the  basis  of  the  doctrine 
.f  Origina  ies  so  deep,  that  it  is  bound  up 

with  the  (  ,s  leration  of  the  very  essence  or 
essences  of  man's  being. 

As  t!,is  fact  led  us  to  anticii)ate,  when  examin- 
ing those  elements  of  man's  nature,  so  it  now 
obliges  us  to  retun,  to  that  point. 

It  has  been  sntficientlj  shown  that  "Oripnal 
Sin  standeth  not  in  the  following  of  Adan,  as  the 
Pelagians  do  vainly  talk,"  which  following  o,.lv 
oocurs,  it  is  maintained,  because  we  do  not  Hkm.so, 
as  we  might,  to  make  our  lives  different. 

We  have  also  seen  that  sin  is  not  inherent  in 
matter;  that  it  is  not  a  substance;  for  Adam  a.s  he 


62 


SOME  FEATURES  OF  THE  FAITH. 


walked  through  Eden,  and  Eve  with  her  material 
frame  taken  out  of  Adam's  fleshly  body,  were 
sinless  beings. 

It  was  possible  for  them,  without  taint  of  sin, 
even  to  look  both  ways  from  Paradise,  and  to 
realize  their  relationship  to  the  world  of  matter 
over  which  they  were  divinely  placed,  as  well  as 
to  glory  in  their  life  in  the  image  of  God.  To 
question  this,  is  to  foi^t  the  human  body  of  our 
sinless  Kedeemer,  which  He  not  only  possessed 
while  here  on  earth,  but  which,  even  now,  lie  wears 
in  Heaven.  "Original  Sin  is  thus  neither  a  sub- 
stance nor  an  accident,"  but,  as  Bishop  Martensen 
siivs,  ''a  false  relation  of  existence."  '*By  one 
man  sin  entered  into  the  world,  and  death  by  sin; 
and  so  death  passed  upon  all  men,  for  that  all  have 
sinned." 

The  initiatory  act  of  sin,  by  which  man  fell, 
while  not  imputed  to  any  but  to  Adam  himself, 
affects  us  all  nevertheless  in  a  verv  real  wav. 

How  this  can  be  is  not  so  difficult  to  realize, 
as  a  hasty,  superficial  view  of  the  matter  might 
load  us  to  imagine.  The  first  thing  that  we  must 
do  is  to  assure  ourselves  that  our  method  of  rep- 
resenting Adam  to  ourselves,  is  accurate  and  pro- 
f«nind  (for  there  is  no  danger  of  going  too  deep 
here).    Otherwise   the   M/matural  relationship 


SOME  FEATCBE8  OF  THE  FAITH. 


wliic'h  exists  between  him  and  us  may  escape  our 
scnitinv. 

He  was  not  simplv  ''another  man,"  or  a  remote 
ancestor.  He  was  all  of  us,  in  actual  commence- 
ment. He  was  the  first  man,  and  as  such,  was  in 
himself  also  what  has,  through  all  the  rolling  cen- 
turies, become  the  human  race. 

Within  his  loins,  we,  all  of  us,  lay  in  a  germ 
state,  of  sueh  sensitive  jjlasticity  as  totally  tran- 
sceufls  all  notions  founded  on  experience. 

Approaching  tiiis  subject,  as  we  must  naturally 
do.  with  our  minds  stored  with  images  taken  from 
human  knowledge  and  experience,  we  shall  iiave  to 
stem  the  strong  current  of  inclination  which  we 
may  feel  to  regard  Adam  as  a  transmitter  of  life 
already  transmitted,  in  the  sense  of  any  ordinary 
ancestor's  part  in  the  chain  of  human  existence, 
and  to  think  that,  as  with  an  ordinary  ancestor, 
time,  and  tlie  introduction  of  new  blood  in  the 
generations  that  have  intervened  between  Adam 
and  ns.  may  jwssibly  have  entirely  eliminated 
the  tlaw. 

§27. 

But  this  thought  must  give  way  to  the  true 
view,  which  sees  in  the  first  man,  not  a  mere  fore- 
fiither,  but  the  direct  moulder  of  the  cardinal 
features  of  the  composite  being  of  each  one  of  ua. 


64 


80ME  FEATUBES  OF  THE  FAITH. 


We  may  bo  assisted  to  this  understanding  of  our 
relationship  to  Adam  by  conceiving  the  whole  race 
of  mankind  throughout  all  the  ages  from  the  mar- 
riage of  Adam  to  the  present  moment,  as  all 
crowded  back  again  into  the  loins  of  Adam,  «s 
possibilities.  Then,  if  Adam  himself  was,  as  has 
been  shown,  in  an  undetermined  condition  pre- 
vious to  his  fall — a  condition  which  awaited  his 
first  elective  act — we  cannot  predicate  of  his  yet 
untransmitted  likenesses  that  they  had  &rf'i'nied 
a  condition  in  iidvance  of  Adam  him-elf.  These, 
Uto,  were  in  a  state  of  undetermined  formability. 
Had  Adam  been  tnu'  to  his  original  holy  nature, 
and  obeyed  the  godly,  instead  of  a  godless  impulse, 
there  can  be  no  difficulty  in  believing  that  this,  his 
first  act,  would  have  influenced  his  offspring  ac- 
cordingly. 

But  Adam,  whose  first  momentous  call  to 
activity,  was  to  hold,  with  due  regard  to  each,  his 
divinely  established  balance  between  the  two 
spheres  to  wliieli  liis  dual  nature  bound  hiiu,  vol- 
untarily destroyed  that  balance,  which  it  was  Ijo- 
yond  ills  suprcmest  effort  to  restore;  and  there- 
fore ill  begcttini:  cliildreu,  lie  transmitted  to 
them  iKiliirrs  )ii(inrd  hi/  Hii.s  IokI  Ixilance.  \< 
the  Scriptiircs  express  it,  lu-  licgat  sons  (no  longer 
after  the  in. age  of  God  ),  but  in  ///.s  tnvn  "image/' 


mum  F£ATUKK8  OF  TWE  FAITH. 


65 


Every  human  birth  therefore  signifies  an  entrance 
on  a  false  development,  a  development  not  to  but 
from  God.  The  image  of  God,  man's  capacity 
of  being  to  the  world  what  God  is  to  man,  is  lost ; 
and  therefore  cannot  be  handed  down  by  Adam. 
"As  by  one  man  sin  entered  into  the  world,  and 
death  by  sin,  and  so  death  passed  upon  all  men, 
for  that  all  have  sinned." 

The  difficulty  and  unsatisfactoriness  of  the 
mind's  attempt  to  associate  sin  with  the  new-bom 
babe,  is  thus  removed. 

§28. 

We  can  now  stoop  over  the  infant's  cot,  and  not- 
withstanding all  the  attractiveness  of  the  picture, 
and  '!!('  ''Heaven"  that  "lies  about  us  in  our  in- 
fant, e  can  even  here  realize  the  true  nature 
of  Original  Sin,  as  being  really  a  thing  antecedent 
to  any  wilful  act,  and  not  necessarily  dependent 
on  any  such  act ;  but  as  being  a  state,  a  negative 
state,  oflPensive  to  the  all-holy  eye  of  Gtnl.  In 
this  case,  not  what  is  present  offends,  but  tlie  ab- 
sence, rather,  of  what  ought  to  be  present.  What 
God  hath  joined  togethei>— humanity  and  the  god- 
ward  impulse— man  hath  here  put  asunder.  The 
image  of  God  is  wanting.  And  in  ita  place  we 
find  the  image  of  man ;  man  after  the  fall.  The 


66 


SOME  FEATURES  OF  THE  FATTU. 


tiny  human  compass,  to  our  eye  so  perfect  and 
beautiful,  is,  nevertheless,  charged  Mrith  a  false 
polarity,  and  is  thus  errant  from  the  first. 

The  difference  between  the  infant  and  the  man 
is  only  the  difference  between  the  bud  and  the 
flower.  Both  are  identical  in  nature,  and  both  are 
recognized  as  such  in  Holy  Scripture. 


CHAPTER  V. 


THE  SAVIOUR. 

§29. 

Ill  ^^-^T  then,  is  there  for  man  ?  What  does 
W  or  can  the  future  hold  for  him  ?  Can  what 
has  heen  lost  ever  be  recovered?  This  is  the 
grand  question.  The  answer  is  two-fold :  it  cannot, 
and  it  can.  From  the  side  of  liunianity,  no  effort 
can  go  forth,  however  suhliuie,  which  possesses  the 
slightest  promise  of  wrestin.i^  Ijuck  from  fate  this 
lo:  t  glory,  for  which  the  worhl  is  ever  yearning, 
and  yearning  most,  perhajis,  amidst  the  fairest 
scenes  of  its  own  abundance. 

"Wherefore  do  ye  spend  money  f.jr  tiiat  which 
is  not  bread,  and  your  labor  for  that  which  sat- 
isfieth  not?"  asks  the  prophet  Isaiah,  and  in  ask- 
ing, stamps  the  whole  long  Sisyphian  enterprise 
of  earth,  in  which  generation  after  generation 
exhausts  the  flower  of  its  strength  in  the  chase 
after  perfect  happiness,  as  hopelessness  itself. 


68 


SOME  FEATUSR8  OF  THE  FAITH. 


Thei'e  are  many  things  which  it  lies  iu  the 
awful  power  of  man  to  do,  but  which,  once  done, 
eonstittite  calamities  with  which  humanity  is  not 
fitted  to  cope.  And  of  all  such  calamities,  we 
stand  face  to  face  with  the  greatest,  and  the  dire 
original,  in  the  Fall  of  man.  To  rise  superior  to 
this  evil,  it  is  not  enough  to  say  that  the  noblest 
achievements  of  man  have  come  short. 

It  is  not  enough  to  say  that,  were  the  world 
to  behold  tJio  spectacle  of  some  lofty  spirit,  tower- 
ing so  far  above  the  rest  of  onr  race  as  to  exhaust 
by  his  individual  merit  the  atoui"*;;-  capacity  of  hu- 
man nature  on  our  behalf,  that  this  effort  woidd 
miserably  fail  of  success.  I'he  truth  is  only  state<l 
when  we  perceive,  and  acknowledge,  that  if  every 
child  of  Adam,  from  the  moment  of  the  Fall  down 
to  the  present,  exerted  the  full  strength  of  his 
inherited  possibilities  towai-ds  this  desirable  end. 
even  this  grand  sum  total  could  not  possibly 
restore  to  us  our  lost  estate,  for  "the  stream  can- 
not rise  higher  than  its  source." 

§  30. 

On  the  other  han<l,  if  this  condition  incon- 
testably  circumscribes  human  might,  we  must  not 
extend  the  limitation  beyond  our  own  sphere,  ^o 
bounds  must  be  set  to  the  power  of  the  Almighty. 


SOME  FEATURErS  OF  THE  FAITH. 


69 


It  is  jxissihlc,  imleed,  for  the  Power  that  lirat 
called  order  out  of  eliaos,  and  formed  man  to  be 
its  governor,  to  again  manifest  omnipotence,  and 
put  forth  an  energv,  ontstripjjing  in  Diviueness 
and  majesty  even  that  which  produced  Creation — 
an  energy  which  should  effect  upon  the  ruins  and 
ashes  of  human  hope,  a  suw*  and  certain  way  to 
man's  lost  heritage. 

That  the  love  of  God  has  actually  furnished 
such  a  way  ont  of  the  raylesa  gloom  of  our  lost 
condition,  is  the  glorious  announcement  of  Christ- 
ianity. From  the  throne  of  God,  the  only  begotten 
8on,  Jesus  Christ,  the  Saviour,  descends,  takes 
our  nature  upon  Jlim,  and  by  His  own  crucified 
Body  makes  a  bridge  for  us,  by  which  to  pass 
from  this  world  to  the  next. 

Of  all  the  titles  given  in  Holy  Scripture  to 
the  Lord,  that  of  "Saviour"  is  the  most  expressive 
and  aecurate.  The  term  "Mediator,"  also  ap- 
plied to  our  lilessed  L<.r(l,  must  not  l)e  allowed  to 
deceive  us  into  deeming  man  to  l)e  any  other  than 
the  thing  he  now  actually  is.  A  "Mediator"  sug- 
gests, insidiously  to  human  pride,  more  assets  in 
merit  and  right  than  man  possesses.  It  calls  up 
a  vision,  all  too  honorable,  of  the  balancing  of 
claims,  and  of  concisions  on  the  one  side  and  on 


70 


SOME  FEATURES  OF  THE  FAITH. 


the  other ;  and  of  the  smoothing  out  of  misconcep- 
tions in  the  good  hope  of  restoring  normal  rela- 
tionship. 

This  is  plainly  misleading.  Jesus  Christ,  in 
His  relationship  to  us,  is  preeminently  our 
Saviour;  for  in  bi'idging  over  the  awful  space 
between  God  and  our  race,  He  looks  for  no  help 
from  man.  He  has  ''trodden  the  wine  press 
•alone."  He  demands  no  terms;  for  man  has 
plainly  none  to  give.  Such  a  proposition  from  a 
Mediator  would  only  lie  to  re-echo  human  despair. 
The  very  offer  of  a  Saviour  supposes  that  we  are 
lost,  and  the  title  helps  us  by  u-.pplying  us  with 
the  first  fact  of  the  case.  Xo  terms:  and  yet  a 
requirement.  And  the  requirement  is  eminently 
a  Saviour's,  being  characterized  by  a  simplicity  so 
gracious,  that  even  tlie  poverty  of  man's  spiritual 
resources  can  compass  it.  '"lie  that  believes  and 
is  baptized  shall  be  saved." 

And  yet,  simple  as  this  initial  step  is,  there 
is  a  significance  about  it  that  demands  reverent 
attention. 


CHAPTER  VI. 


THE  KIITODOM  OF  BMAYWM, 

§32. 

S'J'ANDING  in  the  presence  6f  his  offended 
Creator,  man  must  not,  ostrioh-like,  seek  to 

protecL  himself  by  closing  his  eyes  to  his  own  dark 
record.  This  is  not  the  quickest  way,  any  more 
than  it  is  the  truest  or  most  effective  way  of  right- 
itic;  ourselves.  And  vet  it  is  the  resort  of  verv 
many  well  meaning  people,  who  are  not  wholly 
conscious  of  what  they  cling  to,  and  who  do  not  at 
all  realize,  that  in  the  exact  measure  in  wiiich  they 
dissemble  their  past  to  their  own  satisfaction,  they 
leave  themselves  without  a  Saviour. 

The  familiar  mental  picture  which  we  have  all 
entertained,  whether  to  reject  after  examination 
or  to  retain  (possibly  without  examination),  and 
which  represents  the  Saviour  as  surrounded  by  the 
multitude  who  listen  to  His  lofty  and  pure  teach- 


72         soMx  wmkTvmu  ow  tux  vaith. 


iiig;  witness  His  beneficent  deeds;  perhaps  eat 
of  the  miraculous  loaves;  and  then,  graduallj 
allow  admiration  inwardfy  and  secretly  to  mellow 
into  attaofaBMnt,  and  finally  into  oatri|^t  diaeiple- 
ship — this  picture  is  tiie  s<^^raed  and  toned-down 
form  in  which  all  who  accept  this  as  the  way  in 
which  union  with  Qod  is  restored  (or  whidi  is  the 
same  thing,  disciples  are  made),  agree  to  retain 
the  light  of  nature  for  their  guidance  here,  instead 
of  the  plainly  expressed  will  of  God  our  Saviour. 
These  accept  Christ  as  Mediator,  not  as  Saviour. 

We  am  not,  however,  left  to  such  ordinary 
light  for  the  conduct  of  this  extraordinary  busi- 
ness. 

Our  Blessed  Lord  has  been  careful  to  instruct 
us  very  fully  and  emphatically,  concerning  ad- 
mission into  that  kingdom  ^diidi  He  <»me  to  estab- 
lish, and  which  is  not  of  this  world;  and  His 
instructions  are  very  different,  if  not  the  direct 
opposite  to  any  such  traddess  transition  from  the 
condition  of  outlaws,  into  that  of  children  of  the 
Household. 

§33. 

Thou^  God  indeed  "bow  tke  HMvens  and 
come  down,"  He  cannot  stoop  to  any  eeofusion  of 
good  and  evil.  There  is  no  irr^ulari^;  no 
abandonment  of  the  eternal  lines  upcm  ynMicAi  tlte 


aOMB  PXATUSJes  OP  TUK  FAITH. 


73 


Almighty  ever  proceeds.  There  is  no  f..rgotful- 
Tipus  of  man's  past  with  God,  no  matter  how  wil- 
ling we  may  be  to  dissolve  it  into  a  miat  and  doubt ; 
and  in  the  application  of  the  process  which  is 
meant  to  remedy  ti«t  jMst,  there  can  be  nmie,  if 
the  Saviour's  work  is  to  be  rml. 

If  we  reflect  upon  the  analogy  which  the  world 
supplies  of  a  king  having  to  do  with  rebellious 
subjects,  we  can  understand  just  how  far,  and 
ujon  what  conditions,  the  recreant  mass  shall 
be  allowed  to  merge  again  into  the  royal  ranks. 

It  is  required,  as  their  first  act,  of  all  rebels 
in  such  a  case*  that  they  lav  (i(»\vn  their  arms. 

And,  without  carrying  the  analogy  any  fur- 
ther, this  procedure,  based  u})on  sound  conceptions 
of  right,  supplies  us  with  the  primary  phases  of  the 
simple  yet  significant  requirement,  which  the  Sa- 
viour lays  upon  the  threshold  of  the  world's  restor- 
ation. Man,  too,  must  lay  down  his  arms — ^the 
Adamic  arms  of  flesh  in  which  he  trusted  to  attain 
his  ideal — and,  acknowledging  duly  his  impious 
rebellion,  must  accept  the  generous  gift  of  pardon, 
together  with  entrance  upon  a  different  kind  of 
life. 

§  34. 

It  is  the  farthest  possible  from  truth,  and  a  con- 
ception that  does  credit  neither  to  our  h^d  nor 


74 


SOME  PKATrSES  OF  TMK  FAITH. 


our  heart,  to  say  iiotliiug  of  tlit-  k'aring  it  cxliibits 
towards  the  cxprt'sscd  sovereign  will  of  the  Sav- 
iour, tu  imiifiine  that  tlie  principle  here  main' 
tainetl  hy  earthly  monapchs  is  waived  by  the  King 
of  heaven,  in  receiving  rebelliona  and  lost  sinners 
into  His  Kin^om  of  Grace. 

Softened  ineffably  by  the  Saviour's  wearing 
onr  form  and  bearing  our  nature,  the  principle  is, 
nevertheless,  fully  adhered  to  in  the  requirement 
of  Baptism  as  the  initiatory  rite.  The  word 
"Sacrament"  is  a  roniarkahle  witness  to  the  degree 
in  which  the  ("hurch  of  the  first  centuries  was 
imbued  with  this  fact.  "Sacrament"  is  a  word 
that,  notwithstanding  its  world-wide  use  through- 
out Christendom,  from  tlie  earliest  days,  is  not 
only  not  to  Ix'  found  in  Holy  Scripture,  but  is 
of  thoroughly  unchristian,  that  is  to  say,  heathen 
origin. 

The  very  first  connection  of  the  word  with  any- 
thing Christian  is  to  be  found  in  Pliny  the 
Younger's  well-known  letter  to  the  Emperor 
Trajan,  where  he  tells  his  imperial  master  that 
these  extraordinary  people,  the  Christians,  "meet 
tc^ther,  and  bind  themselves  by  a  Sacrament  not 
to  permit  themselves  in  any  widkedness."  Pliny, 
no  doubt,  had  in  his  mind  the  common  meaning 
of  this  word,  familiar  to  every  heathen  soldier 


ROME  FEATUBE8  OF  THE  FAITH. 


of  the  Empire,  riz.,  the  oath  taken  on  tlio  stundanl 
of  his  general,  to  do  a  soldier's  dtity.  That  this 
foreign  word  has  long  become  such  a  familiar 
term  amongst  Christians  of  all  lands  and  laii- 
guages,  tells  us  plainly  that  admiration  for  Ji  sus 
Christ,  and  a  friendly  incli  ti'i.  :i  towards  Him, 
were  alone  considered  to  be  as  untitted  io  ''make  a 
diseipte/'  to  make  a  Chrit  i  u  out  of  a  non- 
Christian,  as  an  equal  n^le:  •  f  all  due  form 
was  permitted  in  making  Boman  legionary. 

Renunciation  of  the  past,  not  only  in  its  va- 
rious acts  of  ill-doing,  but  in  its  whole  underlying 
principle  of  innate  self-dependence;  the  formal, 
complete  vacating  and  abjuring  of  that  state; 
and  instead  of  this,  the  being  counted  "in  Christ" 
— all  this  is  not  only  not  v.'aived,  but  is  held  to  be 
so  essentially  necossr.ry,  that  the  Saviaur  expressly 
ordains  for  it  th*.  utmost  acknowledgment  and 
registration  of  which  soul  and  body,  that  is  to 
say,  man,  is  capable,  in  the  due  reception  of  a  rite 
which  r^rds  the  body  as  of  equal  importance 
with  the  soul. 

§35. 

But  with  this  outward  act  (Baptism),  which 
stands  by  Divine  appointment  instead  of  silent 
or  otherwise  expressed  emotion,  there  must  be 
joined  an  inward  belief.    And  what  is  this  belief. 


76 


sous  FKATUBXS  OF  THE  FAITH. 


we  may  well  ask  with  fear  and  trembling;  this 
condition  which  is  required  of  creatures  sunk 
in  snch  a  misery  of  impotence  ? 

In  seeking  to  answer  this  query,  we  cannot 
too  faithfully  remember  all  that  has  been  said  of 
man's  total  bankruptcy  in  any  and  every  spiritual 
or  meritorious  sense ;  yet,  though  he  can  assuredly 

do  nothing  to  merit  or  achieve  any  betterment  of 
his  condition,  he  can  at  least  rise  above  a  brutish 
ignorance  of  his  state,  and  oven  acknowledge  his 
sense  of  wliere  and  how  he  stands  before  his  Maker. 
Now  the  attainment  to  this  fundamental  conscious- 
ness on  our  part,  is  pretty  nearly  the  fulfilment 
of  the  pre-requisite  to  Baptism. 

•Man  must  trust  in  something  or  someone. 
He  trusts  therefore  either  in  himself,  that  is,  in 
hiunan  nature;  or  in  the  superhuman;  and  the 
surest  way  to  direct  his  trust  towards  the  super- 
human, and  his  Saviour,  is  to  enable  him  to  mature 
his  sense  of  his  own  and  of  humanity's  untrust- 
worthiness. 

This  inward  knowledge  of  his  state  before  God, 
and  of  which  the  intelligent  submission  to  Baptism 
is  the  expression,  is  the  native  soil  of  the  seed 
which  produces  fruit,  thirty,  sixty,  an  hundred- 
fold. 

This  condition  in  man,  consisting  of  (1)  coa- 


SOME  FSATUBXS  OF  THE  FAITH. 


77 


hoioiisness  of  absolute  impotence  to  regain  what  we 
have  lost;  (2)  the  expression  of  that  conscions- 
nesa;  and  (3)  the  acceptance,  and  confession  with 
the  mouth,  of  Jesus  Christ's  as  the  only  "name 
under  Heaven  given  amongst  men  by  whom  we 
must  be  saved" — ^this  condition  is  all  the  Saviour 
requires  of  a  lost  world;  and  the  requirement  de- 
mands of  us  nothing  that  is  not  fully  wiUiin  the 
reach  of  the  most  abandoned  and  hopeless  amongst 
a  race  of  sinful  men. 

This  condition,  then,  upon  whicii  Baptism  is 
jlivon  to  us,  is  only  an  attitude  of  soul,  which 
''places"  us  as  it  were  for  the  full  reception  of  the 
free  gift  of  the  Saviour.  Belief,  therefore,  is  not 
here,  whatever  it  may  be  elsewhere,  a  something 
inconsistent  with  man's  deplorable  helplessness. 
It  is  rather  the  clear  expression — ^the  cry  of  that 
state  of  helplessness. 

Belief  here  is  not  and  cannot  be  an  achievement 
nf  rare  spirituality,  required  of  a  world  dead  to 
ail  spirituality. 


CHAPTEB  VII. 


BAPTSIM  OF  JOHN  TH£  BAPTIST. 

§36. 

CHERE  is  danger  at  this  point,  of  confusing 
the  work  of  Christ  with  that  of  John  the  Bap- 
tist; and  the  tffmfj  of  Bapti»B,  with  that  of 

Kepentaiice. 

The  sigh  of  the  publican  was  the  sigh  of  a 
jjerson  in  covenant  with  God,  who  shudderoil  at  a 
long  retrospoct  of  violations  of  that  covenant. 

For  the  healing  of  this  disease',  the  Baptism 
(if  John  was  sutHcienf ;  but  we  must  deepen  the 
sigh  infinitely,  if  we  would  make  it  the  true  echo 
of  the  soul'o  condition  before  Christian  Baptism. 
Xot  only  for  sins  consented  to  and  committed, 
and  therefore  for  sins  for  which  it  is  the  beneficent 
will  of  Qod  to  make  repentance  sufficient ;  but  also 
for  the  sin  of  sins — ^the  sin  of  Adam  which  fa- 
tally affected  the  inechanism  of  his  own  being, 


SOME  FEATURES  OF  TilE  FAITH. 


79 


aiul  caused  him  to  transmit  to  every  child  since 
born  into  the  world,  that  unholy  deformity:  for  all 
this  ought  we  to  sorrow,  and  in  the  person  of 
Christ  our  second  Adam  and  representative,  we 
do  sorrow,  in  that  sigh  which  is  the  tirst  breathing 
of  the  belief  required  in  Baptism.  Though  the 
attitude  of  mind  is  doubtless  the  same  in  both 
cases,  it  is  necessary  to  distinguish  between  the 
extent  of  the  efficacy  of  the  one,  and  of  the  other, 
of  the  Baptisms. 

§  37. 

We  see  all  this  taught  plainly  by  the  action 
of  those  mentioned  in  the  I^ew  Testament,  who, 
having  been  baptized  by  John,  came  afterwards 
f.>  the  Apostles,  to  be  baptized  into  the  name  of  the 
Father,  Son,  and  Holy  Ghost— in  the  first  case 
>"('kinjr  renassion  of  the  fruit  sins;  in  the  latter 
of  the  root,  or  original  sin. 

Tt  eaiiiiot  escape  the  notice  of  anyone  who  is 
;it  ill]  faiuilijii-  with  tli,.  ^;^l>je('t  matter  of  tlie  <ros- 
pcls,  that  the  Saviour  iicvcr  frcars  iiur  speaks  of 
onr  race  as  only  partially  irciie  wrong;  a>^  (IctVctivc 
in  certain  respects  here  and  iliere,  and  only  need- 
ing a  correcting  hand  to  set  all  right  again. 

On  the  contrary,  His  whole  treatment  of  man- 
kind is  that  of  one  who  is  satisfied  that  patching 


80 


SOME  FKATUBKS  OF  THE  FAITH. 


is  futile,  and  that  nothing  less  than  the  recasting 
of  the  whole  mass  will  suffice. 

Consequently,  in  seeking  to  learn  how  He 
brings  home  to  us  His  w<»ndrous  aehievemeut  of 
salvation,  we  naturally  look  for  one  of  those 
telling  figures,  those  considerate  references  to  fa- 
miliar ideas,  by  which  He  is  wont  to  bring  the 
ki^  things  of  His  own  doing,  down  to  the  level 
of  mr  grasp. 

And  kere  we  do  not  look  in  vain.  Such  a 
%are  He  has  not  failed  to  give  us;  and  the  famil- 
iar object  to  whieh  He  likens  our  union  with  Ilim, 
is  one  which  is  wholly  satisfactory  to  every  sincere 
seeker  of  a  Saviour,  and  fasily  within  the  uuder- 
standiug  of  the  least  iniaiiinative. 

Standing  in  the  uiidst  of  a  lost  world,  sur- 
rounded bv  men  witii  the  seal  of  their  perdition 
stamped  upon  them,  the  Saviour  who  has  aomv 
to  do  a  gracious  work,  and  who  knows  that  He 
has  within  Himself  the  creative  power  to  re-make 
iMs  spoiled  material,  humwity,  well  knows  all 
tte  features  of  our  case,  and  how  to  deal  with  it. 
Tlie  sin  and  misery'  which  He  saw  about  Him, 
brought  to  His  mind,  undimmed  and  unobscured 
by  the  thousands  of  years  that  intervened,  the  fa- 
tal, causative  act  of  Adam  in  Eden,  the  ruinous 
effect  of  that  act  upon  our  first  parents*  har- 


SOME  FEATUKE8  OF  THE  FAITir.  81 

monious  being;  then  the  transmission  of  tlii^  de- 
fective nature  to  every  succeeding  age  and  indi- 
vidual; and  lastly,  the  inevitable  produet--the 
miserable,  unholy  present,  instinct  with  unsatisfied 
yearning.    He  looks  along  this  whole  vista  which 
terminates  at  His  feet,  and  beholds  only  the  sol- 
itary figure  of  Adam  in  Eden,  in  the  first  pulsings 
of  his  and  our  wrecked  nature.    There  the  iritole 
r.f  the  present,  and  of  every  present  siaee  tke 
Fall,  was  embodied.    To  change  this  ever-r«cur- 
ring,  pitiable  present,  the  action  of  the  Saviour 
must  bo  far-reaching  indeed,  and  tliorough.  U 
laust  not  lose  sight  of  Eden,  and  of  all  that  tran- 
spired there. 

^  In  Adam,  as  we  have  seen,  we  all  lay  as  possi- 
bilities. From  that  ancient  trunk,  time  has  pro- 
duced a  luxuriant  growth,  and  shown  all.  the  latest 
shoot  as  well  as  the  earliest,  equally  i>oisonous. 
The  close  connection  of  the  newest  sprout  here, 
with  the  parent  trunk,  is  faithf^  noted.  The 
Saviour  reviews  the  whole ;  and  &m  edbnly  begins 
the  eternal  overthrow  and  tmmstrml^  of  the 
whole. 

§  38. 

M§m  the  root,  present  in  all  the  branches, 
shall  give  plMe  to  Christ  ^  root,  equally  present 
ifi  ttf  &e  l«»B<^it. 


82 


SOME  FEATURES  OF  THE  FAITH. 


riie  Adamic  tree,  producing  its  branches  by 
{ivneration,  shall  witness  the  Christ-Vine  multi- 
plying His  branches  by  regeneration.  By  birth, 
each  of  us  becomes  a  branch  of  the  false  vine ;  by 
the  new  birth  we  shall,  through  sheer  mercy, 
be  made  branches  of  the  true  Vine. 

To  those  whom  the  Saviour  has  chosen  out  from 
the  world  and  made  His  disciples,  He  said,  ''I  am 
the  Vine,  ye  arc  the  branches,"  "'He  that  abideth 
in  Mo,  and  I  in  him,  the  same  bringeth  forth  much 
fruit,  for  without  Me  ye  can  do  nothing."  "If 
:i  iiiiin  al)i<le  not  in  Me,  he  is  cast  forth  as  a  branch 
and  is  withered." 

IIi.<  disciples,  then,  were  not  mere  followers  oi 
a  i;roat  Teacher.  Tliey  were  branches  of  a  Vine, 
of  which  that  mighty  Teacher  was  the  life-giving 
Vinestock.  Here  we  have,  taught  by  a  faultless 
tigure,  a  complete  severan(»  from  the  first  Adam, 
and  an  equally  complete  merging  of  our  life  and 
being  in  the  second  Adam;  apart  from  whem  we 
can  now  do  nothing — nothing  in  the  new  effective 
sense. 

The  Saviour's  own  hand  cuts  off  from  the  old 
root  of  Adam,  and  grafts  into  the  true  Vine,  the 
first  disciples  of  Christ ;  and  these  are  in  turn  com- 
missioned l)y  the  Saviour  to  similarly  ingraft  the 
whole  world,  until  every  off-shoot  from  the  Adamic 


SOME  FEATURES  OP  THE  FAITH.  83 

l.ase  shall  have  l)coii  cut  off  and  grafted  into  the 
('hrist-Vinc,  there  to  bring  forth  good  fruit,  and 
to  flourish  by  the  energy  of  a  new,  infused,  holy 
life. 

§39. 

The  commission  to  the  first  "branches"  thus 
to  multiply  their  number,  was  expressed  in  these 
words:  "Go  ye  therefore  and  make  disciples  (.,r 
make  Christians)  of  all  nations,  bapti;;ing  them 
into  the  Ifame  of  the  Father,  ami  ..f  the  Son,  and 
of  the  Holy  Ghost,  teaching  them  to  observe  all 
things  whatsoever  I  have  commanded  you,  and  lo, 
I  am  with  you  alway,  even  unto  the  end  of  the 
world.  Amen." 

Here  we  have  men  who  were  in  possession  of 
the  Saviour's  Divine  grace,  bidden  to  extend  that 

Messing  to  others;  and  the  method  of  communicat- 
ing it  is  plainly  and  clearly  stated  by  the  Saviour, 
TO  be  by  baptizing  them:  "make  disciples"  of 
i hem—make  them  what  you  youj-sehvs  are- 
branches.  "He  that  believes  and  is  baptized  shall 
be  saved." 

Baptism  is,  therefore,  the  meenng-grouml  of 
an  offended  Creator  and  His  rebellious  creatures. 

There  is  no  irregular,  unseemly  fusion  pos- 
.^ihie  here. 


84 


SOMK  VKXTVMfX  OF  THS  FAITH. 


It  is  due  to  God  tliat  a  reverent,  meaningful 
formality  should  be  observed ;  while  it  is  becoming 
the  mercy  of  a  Saviour  to  make  that  requirement 
one  that  shall  be  well  within  the  reach  of  men 
so  dettitute. 

If  it  should  seem  that  more  is  required  of  man 
than  Baptism,  thus  understood,  demands,  in  order 

1'^  effect  a  living  union  with  the  Saviour,  and  to 
dn'y  ingraft  an  Adamic  growth  into  the  true  Vine; 
we  must  rememl)or  that,  as  this  is  all  man  is  ca- 
pable of,  to  require  anything  beyond  this  is  to 
take  away  from  the  full  cfficacv  of  the  Saviour. 

This  is  wretched  iiuuiauity's  best  prescntaiion. 
To  looic  for  more  is  to  attribute  to  the  Red-  >nier 
a  misoiAnilation  of  the  possihilitin  ^  tl»  sitM- 
1i<Mi;  end  miscalculation  hem  xaetsm  hSmaee. 

In  :&Bt,  it  n»iy  at  this  very  juncture  be  asked 
if  nMm,  iK>t  Merely  on  ^  thr^h<dd  of  his  life  in 
CSoist,  hat  in  the  full  nom-day  of  matured  dis- 
ciplM^p,  is  capaUe  of  anything  more  than  an 
acknowle<%ement,  true  and  real,  of  his  own  proper 
helplessness  and  uiidosorvingness  ? 

Beyond  this,  surely  ail  is  borrowed  from  "liim 
who  giveth  all." 


CHAPTER  Vlll. 


CUBISTIAN  BAPTISM. 


40. 


¥  V  BAPTISM,  the  relationship  which  water 
■  be«w  to  the  spiritual  meaning  of  the  sacrament, 
and  tho  importance  of  water  as  a  factor  therein, 
arc  iim  the  relationship  and  the  importance  which 
i!..  My  poBsrsses  in  the  complex  being  of  man; 
a.ul  the  ho.iy  \^oing  as  eternal  and  immortal  as 
t!  ^  sou],  the  neceshitj  of  its  being  provided  for  in 
tfi..'  sacrament  of  life,  after  it.  kind,  is  as  a!v.ol„to 
as  any  oiaim  the  soul  can  lay  to  recognition 
therein. 

We  have  duly  noted  that  it  is  man,  i,-  the  ful- 
ness of  his  two-fold  being,  that  Christianity  seeks, 
first  to  restore  to  his  Panwiisiaeal  condition,  and 
fhen  to  perfect  as  o«r  «F«Aer  which  is  in  heaven 
's  perfect";  aad  therelt»re  all  exclusively  soul- 
i»  a  ^atoi^  «f  the  plan  of  Christ  the 


86  SOME  FEATUSK8  OF  THX  FAITH. 


Saviour,  and  must  inevitably  result  in  missing  the 
aim  of  true  Cbristianitj. 

We  are  not  permitted  to  indulge  the  natural 

inclination  to  omit  the  body  from  our  conception 
of  Christianity,  heaping  it  with  all  manner  of  con- 
t<>mpt  and  blamo;  but  rather  to  dodicato  it  utterly 
to  God,  to  present  it  iis  a  habitation  for  the  Holy 
Ghost,  and  to  exercise  it  in  the  servieo  of  ITim  who 
is  content,  now  and  through  all  eternity,  to  wear 
it  at  the  right  hand  of  God  on  high. 

In  fact,  it  would  almost  seem  that  our  Blessed 
Lord,  not  content  with  vindicating  the  right  of  the 
body  to  equal  consideration  and  value  with  the 
soul,  was  inclined  at  times  to  make  it  paramount. 

His  very  choice  of  the  vine— of  so  visible, 
tangible,  and  familiar  an  object — as  the  great 
type  and  model  of  our  union  with  Himself,  is 
witness  of  this. 

§41. 

There  is  a  difficulty  with  many,  however,  in 
bringing  themselves  to  admit  this  position  in  re- 
ligion for  the  body  and  its  outwardness,  and  though 

we  seldom  meet  with  any  confession  in  so  many 
words,  of  such  unwillingness,  there  is  no  lack  of 
evidence  of  its  widespread,  misleading  influence. 

That  any  outward  act  affecting  the  body,  any 
visible,  physical  form  or  ceremony,  such  for  in- 


SOME  PKATUBKS  OF  THE  FAITH. 


87 


stance  as  the  application  of  water  in  Baptism, 
can  have  any  deep,  eternal  significance  in  a  relig- 
ion which  is  so  conspicuously  and  avowedly  one  of 
the  heart,  is  offensive  to  the  judgment  of  not  a  few 
people  of  whose  devoutness  we  cannot  doubt 

The  revulsion  produced  in  such  minds  by  the 
high  ehiini  made  for  such  outward  features,  is  not, 
however,  the  result  of  calm,  prayerful  eontempla- 
tion  of  tlie  whoh'  ease,  with  the  words  of  the 
Saviour  before  the  mind  ;  hut  springing  up  within 
us  as  it  doe.^  naturally,  and  without  any  etl'ort,  we 
must  seek  the  cause  deej)  down  in  tlie  very  slrue- 
ture  of  the  heart  of  man. 

First,  it  is  hard  for  us  children  <.f  Adam  t.-r 
the  old  nature  struggles  hard  for  its  litV.  wit!,,,,  us ) 
to  wncede  that  ''there  is  no  health  in  us" ;  and,siui- 
ple  as  the  Baptismal  requirement  is,  it  sorely 
sifts  us  to  the  core. 

We  confess  with  reluctance,  that  we.all,  in  the 
loins  of  Adam,  effected  such  impious  and  eom- 
plete  ruin  of  our  prospects,  as  to  render  fatite  and 
vain  our  most  heroic  efforts  to  right  ourselves. 

That  any  thing  of  moment  affecting  our  best 
interests  can  be  done,  and  we  have  no  part  in  it,  is 
a  vicious  blow  to  human  pride,  and  one  which  we 
are  constitutionally  disposed  to  spare  ourselves. 

Constructed  as  we  are,  there  is  on  the  other 


MMdocorr  nwumoN  tbt  chmr 

(ANH  and  SO  lOr  CHART  N».  2i 


88 


SOME  FEATURES  OF  TilE  FAITH. 


liand  nothing  so  soothingly  satisfactory  to  our 
bribed  reason,  as  to  feel  that  we  in  a  measure  buy 
our  blessedness  from  heaven,  by  bringing  to  the  ex- 
change certain  marketable  treasures  of  good 
within  ourselves. 

The  mind  seldom  enters  with  any  kindly  en- 
ergy, however,  into  the  dutiful  task  of  finding  out 
to  what,  or  to  whom,  we  owe  what  we  bring,  or 
think  we  bring. 

*'By  faith  we  are  saved" — here  in  this  "sound 
and  most  wholesome  doctrine"  we  rest  our  subtle, 
unconscious  vindication  of  human  worth;  with 
argumentation  born  of  instincts  closely  allied  to 
those  which  prompted  Saul  to  save  some  darling 
things  from  a  ruin  which  God  had  commanded 
him  to  make  ruthlessly  complete  (I.  Sam.  xv.). 

Faith  saves  us,  purchases  redemption ;  and  this 
"faith"  we  can  produce  within  the  limits  of  our 
own  resources.  Our  humanity  can  still  achieve 
this  thing,  and  when  we  think  we  have  successfully 
wrought  it  out,  we  come  to  the  font,  or  to  the  altar 
rails  as  the  case  may  be,  and  there  «y  down  our 
freight  of  merit,  and  strive  as  wc  m  •  to  believe 
that  we  are  about  to  receive  as  a  free  gift,  that 
which  we  have  done  everything  in  our  power  to 
render  a  thing  of  barter  and  exchange. 

Faith  may  truly  be  said  to  be  the  hearing  and 


SOKE  FKATUBSS  OF  THE  FAITH. 


89 


believing  the  voice  of  the  Saviour  which  says, 
"Come  unto  Me  all  ye  that  labor  and  are  heavy 
laden,  and  I  will  give  you  rest;"  but  the  impres- 
sion which  that  Divine  voice  makes  upon  us  is  pre- 
cisely the  counterpart,  in  depth  or  shallowness,  of 
our  consciousness  of  our  own  proper  worthlessness. 

Let  the  foundation  of  Faith  be  well  laid  in  the 
inviolable  conviction  of  our  true  condition  before 
God,  and  we  have  warranty  for  a  living,  fruitful 
faith  on  the  hearing  of  the  Saviour's  voice. 

Let  us,  on  the  other  hand,  fail  to  do  justice 
to  this  fundamental  fact ;  let  us  lean  to  the  fond, 
lingering  mistake,  that  from  the  embers  of  human 
resource  or  hope,  some  spark  may  still  be  blown 
into  a  flame  that  shall  illumine  our  darkness,  and 
promise  to  lessen  the  difficulties  of  recapturing 
Eden— let  us  loan  to  this,  and  what  is  the  result 
as  regards  faith  i  The  result  plainly  is,  that  as 
this  is  but  the  old  Pelagian  lie,  and  we  cling  to 
it,  we  are  only  repeating  the  unhappy  work  of 
Adam,  and  putting  the  Saviour  irrevocably  from 
us ;  an  act  of  impiety  to  which  even  Adam  did  not 
attain. 

§49. 

Coming  thus  to  the  sacrament  of  Baptism,  it 
is  not  very  wonderful  that  we  should  be  disposed 
to  attach  very  little  value  to  a  rite,  so  simple  and 


90  SOME  FEATUBES  OF  THE  FAITH. 

SO  external  as  the  application  of  a  little  water ;  an 
act  not  only  outward  and  bodilyj  and  therefore, 
we  think,  unavailing  in  religion,  but  an  act  above 
all  which  owes  nothing  whatever  to  vs.  Here, 
doubtless,  is  the  real  difficulty;  and  difficulty  it 
certainly  is ;  leveling  us  to  the  true  level  of  our 
powers  in  the  struggle  for  salvation. 

But  this  difficulty  ought  to  be  understood  by  us 
a  little  better  than  it  is. 

We  should  know  that  it  is  because  so  much  is 
due  to  God,  that  so  little  is  to  be  credited  to  our- 
selves: and  further  than  this,  we  should  realize 
that  the  kernel  of  the  difficulty  lies  in  our  failure 
— perhaps  our  stubborn  unwillingness — to 
acknowledge  all  this. 

As  regards  the  Saviour's  part  in  Baptism,  it 
is  hardest  for  us  to  conceive  of  a  Nature  so  in- 
effably nobler  than  our  own,  and  so  unmeroenary, 
with  all  our  experience  gained  from  a  world  whose 
well  understood  maxim  and  motto  is,  "Nothing 
for  nothing." 

Then,  too,  a  superficial  gauging,  by  common- 
place ideas,  of  the  office  which  water  performs  in 
this  sacrament,  very  naturally  leads  to  an  unsat- 
isfactory estimate. 

But  it  is  little  wonderful  that  the  light  of 
reason,  which  guided  us  with  such  poor  euaseaa 


SOMS  FEATUBE8  OF  THE  FAITH. 


91 


hitherto,  should  continue  to  misguide  us  here, 
where  it  is  as  ungracious  as  it  is  impious  to  attempt 
to  exercise  it  critically. 

No  one  who  understands — ^that  is,  takes  the 
trouble  to  understand — ^the  true  situation,  can 
have  any  quarrel  with  the  simple  features  of  this 
momentous  sacrament;  for  (if  it  be  permitted  us 
to  have  any  opinion  of  the  fitness  of  any  of  our 
Blessed  Redeemer's  'iistitutions),  we  may  see  how^ 
fairly  it  sets  forth  man's  expression  of  despair 
through  sin,  his  abandonment  of  the  Sisyphian 
task  of  trying  to  recover  the  irrecoverable,  and  his 
embracing  tlie  free  gift  which  the  Saviour  has  to 
bestow;  while  on  God's  part  it  is  gracious  to  in- 
finity, in  all  it  conveys  and  the  little  it  imposes ; 
even  though  so  just  in  its  pivotal  requirement, 
that  man  shall  acknowledge  that  he  is  but  dust — 
unhallowed  dust,  which  God  consents  to  re- 
animate. 

Thus  obedience  and  deathless  gratitude  become 
us  rather  than  questioning. 

The  bripf  fonnelity  stands,  in  its  simplicity, 
like  a  wall  of  adamant  between  man  and  presump- 
tion. 

Having  failed  utterly  to  right  ourselves,  and 
every  attempt  towards  this  end,  no  matter  how 
promising,  only  succeeding  in  fastening  our  chains 


92 


SOME  FEATUKBS  OF  THE  FAITH. 


more  ti(^tly  upon  us,  beoauae  proceeding  inm  a 
wrong  and  unholy  principle,  viz.,  that  of  tmtting 
to  a  something  which  is  not  Qodf  we  are  in  no  po- 
sition to  surest  from  resources  which  have  so  fa- 
tally confounded  ourselves,  improvements  upon  the 
plan  of  our  Lord  and  Saviour.  That  plan,  as 
laid  down  by  our  Redeemer,  who  surely  deserves 
to  be  trusted  both  to  know  and  to  do  what  is  best, 
and  only  what  is  necessary,  is  Baptism,  in  its  out- 
ward and  visible,  and  its  inward  and  spiritual 
phases. 

To  tamper  with  either  of  these  is  awful,  in 
its  sullen  hostility  to  the  ways  of  GU>d. 

§  43. 

The  Church  of  God,  following  closely  in  the 
steps  of  the  Apostles,  has  from  the  first,  faithfully 
guarded  this  entrance  to  the  true  life  and  immor- 
tality. ? 

To  those  who  would  endanger  the  proportion  of 
the  Faith  by  thinking  of  the  outward  part,  or,  as 
it  were,  the  body  of  the  Sacrament  of  Baptism,  as 
the  whole  of  the  Divine  ceremony,  she  presents,  for 
closer  study,  the  teaching  of  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ 
concerning  the  conditions  of  life  in  the  branches  of 
the  vine,  wherein  it  is  plainly  set  forth,  that  the 
most  careful  grafting,  if  unduly  trusted  in,  may 
only  result  in  adding  a  dead  branch  to  the  vino — 


SOME  FSATUBjBS  OF  TBX  FAITH. 


93 


8  branch  which,  because  it  did  not  exhibit  the 
object  of  its  ingrafting  by  drawing  its  life  from 
the  Vine-Stock,  has  brou^t  down  upon  itself  ihe 
doom  of  being  cast  forth  and  consigned  to  the  bam- 
ing. 

To  those  on  the  other  hand,  who,  in  the  joy 

and  consolation  of  having  eyes  that  see,  and  ears 
tliat  hear,  and  hearts  that  understand  the  object 
of  the  Saviour  in  this  grafting,  viz.,  eternal  Ufe 
in  Jesus  Christ,  and  therefore  such  life  as  is  in 
Jesus  Christ,  so  fasten  their  wrapt  gaze  on  that 
great  boon  as  to  think  little  of  the  Divinely  ap- 
pointed steps  thereto,  and  having  omitted  to  give 
these  steps  that  attention  which  is  their  just  due, 
finally  arrive  at  denying  their  right  to  such  atten- 
tion—to all  such  the  Church  faithfully  presents 
the  full  gospel  truth,  that  this  precious  gift  is  made 
to  those  only  who  observe  the  conditions,  so  fully 
and  mercifully  within  our  reach,  which  the  Sav- 
iour is  careful  to  lay  down  as  a  thing  He  requires 
of  all  who  would  profess  and  call  ther, selves 
Christians.    "Make  disc:ples  (or  Christians)  of 
all  nations,  baptizing  them  into  the  K^ame  of  the 
Father,  Son,  and  Holy  Ghost";  and  ''Whosoever 
(believes  and)  is  baptized  shall  be  saved." 

The  contemplation  of  the  great  Salvation 
which  the  Saviour  brings  to  man,  fosters  in  him  de- 


94  SOME  FZATVSE8  OF  THE  FAITH. 

sire,  and  with  de«ire  for  this  gift  is  generated  a 
true  heart-wanning  towards  the  Divine  Giver; 
but  attractive  and  full  of  heavenly  sweetness  as 
this  state  may  even  be,  it  is  nevertheless  not  that 
union  which  our  Lord  and  Saviour  Jesus  Christ 
teaches  and  requires.  Probably  the  best  that  can 
he  said  of  it  is  that  which  our  Lord  said  to  the 
scribe  in  the  gospel  his^''  ' — "Thou  art  not  far 
from  the  kingdom  of  Go^ '  .  xii.  34). 

But  encouraging  as  th."  »8,  it  is  an  emphatic 
assertion  in  substance  that  entrance  had  not  ac- 
tually been  made,  in  the  case  of  the  scribe,  into 
the  kingdom  of  God. 

Branches  in  the  Vine,  and  discipleship  accord- 
ing to  the  will  and  plan  of  the  Saviour,  are  there- 
fore not  thus  effected. 

No  matter  how  the  surrounding  trees  may  bow 
and  do  kindly,  cordial  obeisance  to  the  true  Vine, 
yet  imless  they  are  duly  grafted  into  that  Vine, 
they  are  apart  from  it — apart  from  the  Source  of 
life,  and  are  still  impotent.  "Apart  from  Me 
ye  can  do  nothing." 

Jesus  Christ,  who  "created  the  world  with 
power  and  restored  it  by  obedience,"  asks  of  those 
who  would  be  saved,  one  act  of  obedience,  and  that 
of  a  character  which  cannot  be  vefused  Him 
except  by  the  manifestation  of  present  unfitness, 


MOMK  I  KATUKE8  OF  THE  FAITH. 


95 


or  want  of  true  desire  for  His  Salvation:  which 
two  expressions  are  but  longer  wayi  of  saying  that 

such  persons  reject  Christ. 

Attachment  to  the  person  of  Christ,  and  the 
possession  of  much  of  what  is  popularly  called 
"goodness,"  no  matter  how  true  and  unselfish,  if 
the  will  of  Christ,  being  known,  is  still  neglected, 
constitute  only  a  beautiful  and  pathetic  failure 
in  the  direction  of  Christianity;  and  it  is  unneces- 
sary to  point  out  that  such  "spiritual"  union  (so- 
called)  with  Christ  is  shockingly  unspiritual  in 
the  tmMt  sense  of  the  word,  because  (1)  of  its 
want  of  sympathy  with  the  spirit  of  Christ,  which 
is,  above  all  else,  loyalty  to  the  will  of  God:  and 
(2)  because  this  mere  sentimental  attachment  to 
the  person  of  Christ,  makes  no  visible,  marked 
break  with  self-reliant  Adamisni.     It  does  not 
dutifully  submit  to  that  formal,  declarative  act, 
by  which  confession  of  error  is  made,  abandonment 
of  an  unholy  course  is  effected  becomingly,  and 
readiness  to  accept  unmerited  mercy  is  devoutly 
shown. 

Now  this  gratuitous  waiving  of  any  part  of 
the  requisite  ceremony  of  restoration,  by  such  ab- 
ject petitioners  as  we  are,  is  surely  a  bold  species 
of  indevoutness;  but  when  we  remember  that  the 
ceremony  in  question  has  been  not  only  sanctioned 


96  SOME  FEATITBSS  OF  THE  FAITH. 


and  referred  to,  but  instituted  and  commanded 
as  the  one  plan  of  the  Saviour,  by  the  Saviour 
Himself,  where  is  the  piety  that  does  not  shudder 
at  the  thought  of  deliberately  ignoring  it  ? 

No  account  has  to  be  given  by  us  to  human 
reason  here  as  to  the  efficacy  of  so  limple  and 
outward  a  rite.  To  know  the  will  of  Qod,  and  to 
obey  itf  is  all  our  coiMsem.  "To  obey  is  better  than 
sacrifioe,  and  to  hearken,  than  the  fat  of  nuns.** 

§44. 

To  fail  here  U,  by  implieati<»i  and  extension 
of  the  prindple,  to  impeach  before  the  bar  of 
human  wisdcmi  all  such  beneficent  acts  of  our 
Lord  Jesus  Christ  as  that  which  preceded  His 
"Ephphatha,"  and  the  opening  of  the  eyes  of  the 
blind  man:  "And  He  took  him  aside  fro*,  the 
multitude,  and  put  His  fingers  into  his  ears,  and 
He  spit  and  touched  his  tongue." 

It  is  to  impeach  every  union  of  the  spiritual 
with  the  material. 

It  is  to  impeach  the  very  being  of  the  Saviour 
Himself,  whom  we  know  only  through  His  flesh 
and  blood. 

It  is  to  run  fair  for  the  haven  of  Manichean- 
xsm. 

§45. 

Heart-warming  towards  Jesus  Christ,  from 


•OjCS  FXATtmSB  OP  THE  FAITH. 


97 


whatever  cause,  which  shows  with  such  glowing 
beauty  when  contrasted  with  that  state  of  heart 
and  mind  and  life  in  the  baptized  which  is  repre- 
sented by  the  dead  or  dying  branch,  must,  never- 
theless, not  be  mistaken  for  Christianity. 

Let  it  be  allowed  to  be  "not  far  from  the 
kingdom  of  God" ;  and  in  the  face  of  the  fact  that 
the  Sftvionr  hat  given  and  enjoined  but  one  mnuw  c 
of  making  Chrudiana  out  of  non-Chr  diam,  vi«., 
hy  hapiiting  ihem—thi»  is  all  it  can  !«. 

Besides,  what  is  there  impelling  us,  wIimw 
is  the  rationality  that  forces  us  to  consider  fiinem 
for  ingrafting  to  be  the  full  equivalent  of,  aye, 
preferable  to,  the  ingrafted  state  itself  9 

How  can  we  hope  to  make  it  plain  that  the 
existence  of  vitality  in  the  branch  which  we  wvuld 
ingraft,  ia  our  warrant  for  foregoing  the  operation 
of  grafting  ?  Is  it  not,  on  the  contrary,  our  best 
human  reason  for  proceeding  with  the  grafting? 
And  finally,  could  anyone  with  any  shadow  of  wis- 
dom, ingraft  a  branch  which  gave  no  such  indi- 
cations (where  such  indications  were  possible)  of 
life,  and  fitoess  for  the  ingrafting? 

Now  in  this  living  condition  of  the  branch 
before  ingrafting,  we  have  unerringly  set  forth 
the  very  desirable  state  of  those  who,  not  yet 
baptized,  manifest  real  love  for,  and  even  likeness 


98 


80M£  F£ATUKES  OF  TUX  FAITH. 


to  the  Saviour — a  love  and  a  likeness  which  shame 
and  condemn  those  who,  having  been  duly  united 
to  Him,  have  obstructed  the  life  that  should  have 
come  into  them,  and  obstructed  it,  too,  by  a  love 
for,  and  a  likeness  to  what  is  hostile  to  their  Sav- 
iour— the  World,  the  Flesh,  and  the  Devil. 

§46. 

But  we  must  not  ■compare  the  best  that  exists 
outside  of  the  Vine  (which  is  true  meetnoss  for 
.sharing  the  life  of  that  Vine),  with  the  worst  that 
claims  a  regular  and  real  union  v/it^  the  Vine; 
for  we  know  that  it  is  possible,  alas!  to  prove 
the  existence  of  true  bnmehes  of  that  Vine,  which 
are  now  dead  from  cauiea  above  mentumed:  and 
are  doomed  apparency  only  to  be  cut  off  and  cast 
into  the  fire. 

We  must,  in  all  reason,  compare  the  best  of 
one  thing  with  the  best  of  another,  if  we  would  at- 
tain to  a  righteous  and  just  appreciation  of  the 
relative  merits  of  those  compared  things. 

Let  us  hasten  to  do  this. 

To  pick  out  from  among  men  one  who  could 
satisfy  every  conception  of  a  fit  representative  of 
all  that  is  possible  in  godliness,  stem  righteousness, 
yes,  even  knowledge  and  love  of  Jesus  Christ,  out- 
side of  the  pale  of  Christian  Baptism,  would  be 
an  undertaking  which,  though  imperative  here. 


SOMK  FSATUHU  01*  TUX  VAITB.  00 

it  were  bopeleti  to  attempt  to  do  Mtufaetorilj,  but 

for  one  consideration:  and  that  is,  that  our  Lord 
Jesua  has  Himself  authoritatively  undertaken  thir 
(lifHcuIty  for  ua,  and  we  have  only  to  accept  Hia 

judgment. 

He  has  indeed  pointed  out  one,  w'lose  name 
wir    'OMAv  no  antagonism  to  the  clain.:  John  the 
Bap    t,  the  forerunner  and  announcer  of  the 
world's  Saviour.    Our  Lord  rot  only  points  us  to 
John  the  Baptist,  and  says,  ''Among  them  that  are 
bom  of  women,  there  hath  not  risen  a  greater  tlian 
John  the  Baptist,"  but  He  immediately  proceeds 
to  institute  the  very  comparison  we  ourselves  now 
wish  to  make,  and  for  our  Lord's  treatment  and 
settlonent  of  this  matter  erezy  Christiaa  man  and 
woman  must  feel  devout  thankfulness.    For  if 
this  selection  had  to  be  made  by  erring  men,  it 
might — indeed  it  would  almost  certainly — have 
l)een  wrongly  done:  or  being  done  justly,  it  might, 
and  even  more  certainly  would,  have  been  dis- 
l)elieved. 

Our  Lord  makes  a  comparison  which  is  not 
that  of  the  best  among  the  non-baptized,  with  tho 
best  of  those  who  have  been  baptized,  which  is  all 
that  fairness  requires;  but  a  mu.^h  more  forcible 
comparison  and  <K>ntra8t,  and  one  divinely  in- 
tended to  place  that  new  existence,  new  develop- 


100 


SOME  FEATUBE8  OF  THE  FAITH. 


ment  to  which  Baptism  admits,  upon  an  elevation, 
the  true  glory  of  which  we  are  to  understand  from 
the  extreme  inequality  of  the  comparison,  from  the 
fact  that  tho  earliest  stage  of  discipleship  here 
(among  the  baptized)  transcends  maturity  of  spir- 
itual attainments  elsewhere:  "Verily  I  say  unto 
you,  among  them  that  are  bom  of  women,  there 
hath  not  risen  a  greater  than  John  the  Baptist, 
noiwUhatanding,  he  thai  is  least  in  the  kingdom  of 
heaven,  is  greater  than  he." 

If  this  need  opening  it  is  this:  John  the 
Baptist  is  the  very  best  of  tin  »so  who  have  not  been 
admitted  into  the  Christian  Church  by  its  initial 
rite  of  Baptism;  and  yet  the  least  within  that 
Divine  Society — the  least  of  those,  possibly,  who 
are  in  any  living  degree  branches — is  greater  than 
even  John  the  Baptist.  That  our  Lord  means  the 
Church  by  His  favorite  expression,  the  Kingdom 
of  Heaven,  is  put  beyond  all  controversy  by  His 
parable  of  the  tares,  and  His  exposition  of  that 
parable  (Matt.  xiii.  24,  31).* 


•  "The  drift  of  the  parable  is  to  represent  auto  na  the  pres- 
ent and  fatnre  state  of  the  Kingdom  of  Heaven— the  gospel 
Church.    .    .    .    The    visible   Church    is   the    Kingdom  of 

HeaTen ;  though  there  be  many  hrpocrites  in  It,  Christ  rules  it 
as  a  King ;  and  there  Is  a  remnant  in  It  that  are  the  subjects 
and  heirs  of  Heaven.    .....    The  Church  Is  the  King 

dom  of  Heaven  on  earth"  (Matthew  Heanr.  im  loeo.). 


SOME  FEATUUKS  OF  TIIK  FAITH.  101 


§47. 

The  existence  of  teaching  upon  the  subject  of 
liaptism  which  is  not  consonant  with  apostolic 
truth,  has  certainly,  side  by  side  with  its  awful 
evil,  one  good  effect:  it  drives  us  back  upon  the 
original  defences  of  the  faith,  it  obliges  us  to  re- 
view the  Church's  long  struggle  with  man-made 
conceptions  of  the  truth  committed  to  her;  and 
calls  us  once  again  to  mark  well  her  bulwarks. 

In  this  walk  round  Zion,  we  discover  the  re- 
peated instances  of  that  to  which  attention  has  al- 
ready been  attracted,  that  the  tendencies  to  irreg- 
ular teaching  which  mark  our  day,  are  not  at  all 
peculiar  to  our  day;  but  have  appeared  again  and 
again  l)ack  through  the  centuries.  These  tenden- 
cies produce  new  names,  but  the  names  are  often 
only  the  new  faces  of  very  old  foes. 

Manicheanism,  with  its  abhorrence  of  matter, 
as  being  essentially  evil,  is  the  deadly  root  from 
which  springs  the  unwillingness  to  give  due  regard 
to  the  outward  phase  of  the  Sacrament  of  Bap- 
tism; while  the  hydra-headed  hope— that  within 
the  limits  of  our  old  nature,  if  we  would  only  do  it 
the  fullest  justice,  there  is  a  potency  which  leaves 
us  little  to  desire  from  without  ourselves— is  the 
unmistakable  evidence  that  Pelagianism  is  too 


102 


SOME  FEATUBB8  OF  THE  FAITH. 


deeply  rooted  in  our  Adamic  nature,  to  ever  cease 
to  trouble  any  generation  of  Christians. 

§48. 

"Go  ye  into  all  the  world  and  make  Christians 
of  all  nations,  baptizing  them  into  the  Name  of  the 
Father,  and  of  the  Son,  and  of  the  Holy  Ghost,  and 
teaching  them  to  observe  all  things  whatsoever  I 
have  commanded;  and  lo,  I  am  with  you  alway, 
even  unto  the  end  of  the  world.  Amen." 

The  observing  of  all  things  whatsoever  the 
Saviour  has  commanded,  is  the  complement  of  that 
first  obedience,  bom  of,  at  least,  misery  and  hope- 
lesane^  whidi  seeks  and  unde^oes  Baptism,  and 
upon  which  the  Saviour  may  be  said  to  re-create 
humanity;  for  the  "good"  of  which  Baptism  is  the 
simple  instrument,  is  a  "good"  essentially  in  its 
nature  above  the  reach  of  the  creature.  It  is  an 
act  which  regards  the  cardinal  features  of  the  very 
structure  of  the  creature — man. 

This  reconstruction  of  man  by  the  Saviour, 
or  more  accurately,  the  restoring,  by  Him,  of  the 
original  Divine  balance  lost  by  Adam,  and  by 
Adam  lost  for  each  and  all  of  us,  is  the  work  of  the 
Saviour  in  Baptism;  a  work  with  which  every 
being  less  thau  the  Creator  is  unfitted  to  grapple. 

But  when  this  miraculous,  creative  act  is  ac- 
complished, faithfully  and  truly  upon  that  full 


SOME  PEATtTBES  OF  THE  FAITH.  103 

and  reverent  obedience,  Baptism,  which  is  so  viv- 
idly illustrated  by  the  grafting  of  a  branch  into  the 
Vine,  then  begins  man's  work— "observing  all 
things,"  etc.— without  which  the  ingrafting  must 
oome  to  nothing. 

The  following  illustration  is  humbly  sub. 
mitted.    Conceive  a  railway  engine  which,  by 
some  rashness,  has  been  hurled  from  the  track, 
and,  rolling  down  the  embankment,  rests,  after 
a  complete  revolution  upon  all  its  wheels,  at  the 
bottom.    By  no  conceivable  exertion  of  its  loco- 
motive power,  can  it  recover  its  normal  condition 
on  the  rails.    Every  effort  to  right  itself  must 
only  imbed  it  more  deeply  and  hopelessly  in  the 
lower  ground.    There  is  nothing  in  all  the  fine 
machinery  of  which  it  consists,  that  can  afford  any 
hope  of  surmounting  the  embankment  and  regain- 
ing the  firm,  necessary  rails.    The  creator  of  the 
engine— man— must  again  use  that  creative  power, 
his  intellect,  in  order  to  remedy  the  disaster. 

And  now  what  do  we  notice  in  the  application 
of  this  friendly,  superior  power  that  comes  to  the 
rescue!  The  mighty  forces  of  the  wrecked  loco- 
motive lie  all  inert  and  ignored,  because  of  their 
uselessness  here,  and  this  whole  ponderous  thing 
of  strength  itself  becomes  a  dead  weight  upon 
another  and  greater  strength. 


104  SOME  KKATUKES  OF  THE  FAITU. 

The  engine  is  taken  up  bodily  by  a  power  not 
at  all  its  own,  and  is  set  a  second  time  where  it 
was  alone  designed  to  operate — on  the  rails. 

§49. 

The  power  that  was  useless,  or  only  destruc- 
tive, when  exerted  in  the  fallen  condition,  and 
which  was  utterly  unable  to  recover  the  lost  posi- 
tion, is  now  the  required  force  to  propel  the 
righted  locomotive  along  its  legitimate  course. 

The  case  of  the  railway  engine  is  man's  case. 
From  the  moment  of  their  wrecks,  nothing  good 
can  be  done  by  either;  no  self-righting  is  to  be 
thought  of. 

But  once  rescue — ^that  giant  mercy — is  ex- 
tended, and  the  Creator  again  puts  forth  the  cre- 
ative power,  each  is  competent  to  do  acceptable 

work. 

The  Xlllth  Article  of  the  Church  of  Eng- 
land, which  deals  with  this  subject,  is  therefore 
true  to  the  mark,  though  a  casual  reading  of  it,  in 
the  light  of  a  self-valuing  world,  makes  it  sound 
harsh : 

"Works  done  before  the  grace  of  Christ,  and 
the  inspiration  of  His  Holy  Spirit,  are  not  pleas- 
ant to  God,  forasmuch  as  they  spring  not  of  faith 
in  Jesus  Christ,  neither  do  they  make  men  meet 
to  receive  grace  or  (as  the  school  lUtuors  say)  de- 


SOME  FKATUHES  OF  THE  FAITH. 


105 


serve  grace  of  congruity ;  yea  rather,  for  that  they 
aro  not  done  as  God  hath  willed  and  commanded 
I  hem  to  b(>  done,  we  doubt  not  but  they  have  the 
nature  of  sin." 

Alan's  work,  in  any  meritorious  sense,  begins 
after  Baptism ;  of  which  more,  shortly. 

The  imagery  of  the  railway  engine,  replaced 
upon  the  rails,  makes  two  other  important  and 
pertinent  facts  very  clear.  If  the  righted  loco- 
motive, now  that  it  has  an  opportunity  to  apply 
its  energy  with  the  prospect  of  doing  good  instead 
01  harm,  fails  to  make  any  such  duo  effort,  trust- 
iiij:  to  what  has  beoii  done  for  it,  the  work  of  res- 


cue will  have  been  best( 


in  vain;  for  it  rests 


as  far  from  its  propor  jroal  as  when  it  was  a  wreck ; 
if  again,  this  hefri-nded  engine  only  puts  forth  a 
part  of  its  strength,  and  that  spasmodically,  the 
defect  of  application  is  certain  to  be  registered  in 
the  space  by  which  it  will  fall  short  of  attaining 
it*  proper  and  possible  destiny. 

§  50. 

The  instructive  inferences  from  the  creature  of 
man's  handiwork  to  the  creature  of  God's,  need 
no  elaborating. 

There  is  one  thing  of  which  we  could  wish  to 
be  quite  sure,  and  that  is,  that  neither  the  one  nor 
the  other,  as  they  ppeed  nobly  on  their  course, 


106  SOME  FEATVBSfl  OF  THE  FAITH. 


shall  forget  their  debt  of  obligation  and  grr  titude ; 
and  instead  of  it  permit  their  success  to  be  con- 
sidered as  self  achieved. 

With  regard  to  those  to  whom  we  have  referred 
above,  and  who  do  not  think  outward  Baptism 
necessary  in  order  to  effect  a  fusion  with  Christ, 
this  analogy  of  the  lo<M>motive  is  singularly  un- 
complaisant.  The  imagination  cannot  sustain  the 
picture  of  a  railway  engine  proceeding  along  the 
low  ground  where  it  has  fallen,  in  a  kind  of  sym- 
pathetic  parallel  with  the  rente  designed  by  its 
maker;  especially  when  this  impossible  road-bed 
is  chosen  as  an  improvement  upon  the  rails.* 

When  man  in  Baptism  has  been,  by  an  act  of 
Divine  grace,  restored  to  his  Paradisiacal  pros- 
pect, he  must  exert  all  the  powers  within  him  to  do 
what  is  expected  of  him.  His  goal  has  to  be 
reached,  and  the  reaching  it  crowns  his  career. 

Before  he  was  righted  by  a  Saviour's  achieve- 
ment, this  goal  was  impossible.  The  Saviour's 
achievement  has  now  rendered  it  possible,  hut  it 
has  not  beatoweu  it. 


*  The  conception  recalls  a  scene  In  the  HIppolytus  of 
Euripides,  equally  unmeant  to  be  ludicrous,  where  the  hero  Is 
dragged  along  the  rocky  beach,  by  his  runaway  coursers,  and 
seems  to  derive  considerable  comfort,  between  the  bumps,  from 
muttering  pathetic  ejaculations  about  what  a  model  young  man 
he  Is.  But  HIppolytus  bad  not  refused  rescue ;  and  never  pro- 
posed ttiis  e^tro-cbarlot  careering  as  an  improTement  upon 
tMtter-known  metlio^ 


CHAPTER  IX. 


IITFAKT  BAPTIBIC. 
§61. 

TILL  that  has  been  said  about  the  first  formal 
i^l  and  Divinely  appointed  application  of  the 
work  of  the  Saviour  to  mankind  individually,  may 
seem  to  refer  exclusively  to  those  who  have  at- 
tained to  years  of  discretion,  and  to  leave  the 
Church's  custom  of  baptizing  tender  infants  in 
need  of  some  explanation. 

The  existence  of  a  body  of  modern  Christians 
who  have  found  man's  share  in  the  restored  rela- 
tionship with  God  to  be  so  considerable,  that  chil- 
dren are,  in  their  opinion,  impossible  candidate, 
makes  it  a  decent  courtesy  to  review  the  Church's 
reasons  for  pursuing  here,  as  elsewhere,  amid  the 
ever-changing  scenes  of  Churdi-Iife,  the  change- 
less tenor  of  her  way. 


108 


80MX  nCATUBM  OV  THX  VATTO. 


§52. 

The  pivotal  difficulty  ia  this :  children  cannot 
repent,  and  how  then  can  they  be  baptized? 
Which  is  the  same  as  saying,  children  cannot 
understand  a  l)cnefit,  and  how  can  they  be  bene- 
fitted ?  The  light  of  nature  is  assumed  to  ad- 
vance the  objection.  If  we  could  be  sure  that  the 
light  of  nature  be  the  supreme  arbiter  of  this 
question  whether  children  ought  to  be  baptized  or 
not,  we  might  be  inclined  to  concede  something 
perhaps  of  what  the  Antipaedo-Baptists,  or  (as 
they  are  now  called)  Baptists,  say,  regarding  the 
inability  of  infants  to  meet  the  requirement  of 
repentance  as  preparatory  to  Baptism ;  and  to  see 
less  wrong  in  their  rending  the  body  of  Christ,  to 
establish  an  independent  sect  upon  so  apparently 
slender  a  basis  (Eph.  i.  23 ;  Col.  i.  24). 

§  53. 

But  the  light  of  nature  oonld  not  sare  us,  in 
its  sufficiently  long  trial-time  before  the  wnning 
of  Christ  our  Bederaner,  and  we  must  therefore, 
however  reluctantly,  take  it  down  from  its  hig^ 
pedestal,  and  make  way  for  the  reverent  hearing 
of  the  mind  of  Christ,  as  expressed  both  by  the 
words  and  deeds  of  the  inspired  writers  of  the 
New  Testament 


•OH*  nuTUBn  OF  rum  faith.  109 

The  light  of  nature,  into  whose  constitn- 
ente  negation  of  human  merit  before  God  does 
not  ratdily  enter,  if  not  bo  wholly,  as  may  at  first 
light  he  imagined,  on  the  side  of  excluding  chil- 
dren from  federal  relationship  with  Chrirt,  be- 
cause of  their  incapacity  to  undentand  and  to 
give  intelligent  assent  to  the  obligations  that  go 
with  all  covenants. 

Does  not  the  latest  child  bom  in  our  land,  of 

British  parents,  really  enter  as  fully  into  the  right 
of  the  covenant  of  citizenship,  as  a  Minister  of 
the  Crown  or  the  Chief  Justice  of  the  Supreme 
Court  ?  The  knowledge  and  intelligent  assent  of 
the  latter  does  not  gain  for  him  over  the  ignorance 
and  impotence  of  the  former,  any  more  extended 
or  more  real  protection. 

Place  the  two  in  a  foreign  country  temporar- 
ily, and  malicious  treatment  at  the  hands  of  that 
country  brings  no  more  help  to  the  Minister  or 
the  Chief  Justice  from  his  own  country  than  that 
which  would  be  extended  to  the  bfant. 

They  are  both  citiaens,  both  claim  all  that  their 
country  can  do  for  them,  and  the  claim  in  both 
cases  is  honored. 

The  child  therefore  enters  into  the  covenant  of 
citizenship,  and  the  obligations  as  well  as  the  bene- 
fits of  citizenship  belong  to  it  as  fully  as  they  do 


110          80XB  ntATDBM  OV  THB  VAXTB. 

to  the  mature  British  subject ;  only  the  nation,  in 
its  requirement  of  each,  is  satisfied  with  the  pos- 
sible, and  docs  not  demand  from  either  iiwt  which 
is  beyond  his  powen. 

Britifh  And  United  States  children  are  not  held 
at  aliens  before  the  law  until  they  can  intelligenily 
take  the  oath  of  aUegianoe. 

§64. 

This  ray  of  the  light  of  nature,  therefore,  casts 
a  rather  forbidding  hue  upon  that  representation 
of  the  kingdom  of  God  which  it  was  invoked  to 
confirm;  for  it  shows  all  the  kingdoms  of  this 
world  as  incomparably  its  superior. 

§55. 

The  law  of  nature  and  of  nations  puts  children 
in  the  power  of  their  parents:  and  parents  are 
divinely  placed  in  that  relationship  to  their  chil- 
dren which  God  Himself  occupies  toward  the  par- 
ents. "Honor  thy  father  and  thy  mother,  that 
thy  days  may  be  long  in  the  land  which  the  Lord 
thy  God  giveth  thee." 

Through  the  object-lesson  of  earthly  father- 
hood, it  is  thus  designed  that  we  shall  all  learn  to 
understand  that  otherwise  inexplicable,  blessed 
actuality — that  blending  of  mercy  and  judgment 
which  is  the  summarized  character  of  God. 


•OM«  FKATUBXS  OF  THE  FAITH.  HI 

Part'uts  therefore  iK-iiig  the  natural  guardians 
of  their  children,  have  a  right  to  transact  the  busi- 
neM  pert«:-!iug  to  my  iutcrosts  of  their  children. 

§56. 

And  with  the  iUugtnition  of  the  privilege  of 
citizenship  in  mind,  we  may  fully  agree  with 
Bishop  Burnet's  dictum :  "What  contract,  soever 
they  (the  parents)  make,  hy  which  the  child  does 
liot  lose,  but  is  a  gainer,  these  do  certainly  bind 
the  child."  ^ 

St.  Peter,  in  urging  Baptism  upon  his  hearers 
«ays  (Acts  ii.  39) :  "The  promise  is  unto  you' 
«nd  to  your  children ;»  and  his  audience  well  kne  J 
what  that  meant.  Their  minds  reverted  at  once 
not  only  to  the  right  of  admission  into  the  cove^ 
nant  with  God  by  circumcision,  which  their  in- 
fants  enjoyed  as  Jewish  children,  but  to  the  ex- 
tonsion  of  this  privilege  to  the  children  of  heathen 
and  idolatrous  parents  who  had  become  Jews. 
These  too,  had  the  right  of  entry  into  covenant 
With  God,  a  n>ht  hinging  on  their  parents'  wilL 

§57. 

St.  Paul,  in  deciding  the  question  as  to  whether 
one  of  the  parties  in  a  married  state,  who  had  be- 
eome  a  Christian,  while  the  other  remained  a  hea- 
then, ought  to  continue  to  live  with  the  heathen 


113       soMB  nxTvmm  or  tuk  pjutii. 

fponie,  Claras  that  tlie  union  mutt  be  main- 
tained; for  there  it  a  oommunication  of  bletwng 
from  the  Obriatian  to  the  heathen ;  and  adds  that  if 
this  were  not  to,  the  children  of  this  union  must 
be  regarded  as  unclean,  that  i«,  untittod  to  l)e  ded- 
icated to  God ;  Imt  now  are  thoy  "holy,"  that  is. 
eligible  through  the  one  parent  to  enter  into  formal 
relationship  with,  and  under  the  avowed  protection 
of,  God.  For  the  word  "holy,"  as  the  word  "saint," 
ie  used  by  the  apodtle  as  referring  to  the  federal, 
rather  than  to  the  inner  personal  oonditi<m;  to 
people  as  Christians,  rather  than  to  people  at 
ifanltlesslj  Christlike.* 

§  58. 

Thus  the  children  of  parents,  one  only  of  whom 
is  a  Christian,  are  to  be  brought  to  Christ  and 
entered  into  His  Covenant  by  Baptism. 

There  is  no  question  anywhere  raised,  as  to  the 
ease  of  children  both  of  whose  parents  are  Christ- 
ians. 

That  the  appeals  of  the  apostles,  in  the  first 
promulgation  of  Christianity,  should  therefore 
(that  is,  since  the  mind  of  the  people,  instructed  by 
God  in  the  initiatory  -ite  of  circumcision,  was  that 
parents  acted  for  their  children  in  these  matters), 
be  directed  to  thinking  and  intelligent  minds,  i» 


•  N<rte  D. 


•Om  FSATUBBS  OF  TRB  WAV 


118 


too  natural  to  need  any  explanation ;  as  it  is  too 
iifiul  in  OMM  where  parents  and  children  alike 
wt  interMted,  to  warrant  any  restriction  to  those 
only  who  tie  old  enough  to  tot  in  the  matter,  of  the 
benefiti  obnonily  mMnt  for  and  offered  to  all. 

Th<»  demur  that  there  is  no  command  ia  the 
New  Teetament  to  beptice  children,  is  a  fatuous 
thing,  analogous,  when  the  situation  is  duly  con- 
sidered, to  the  assertion  that  since  there  is  not  any- 
where in  the  New  Tfetament  to  be  found  an  ex- 
plicit command  to  walk  on  our  feet  in  an  upright 
position,  it  is  presumption  in  fallen  beings  to 
assume  any  such  posture,  without  being  able  to 
point  to  a  particular  text  of  Scripture  which  un- 
equivocally enforces  it. 

God  has  adequately,  if  in  diffc  -ur  vay».  eii- 
joined  both  the  walking,  and  the  b  ir.g'.r-  r<  rij^ 
young  to  Him,  and  has  never  interr  t  *  .j  Um  n 
conformity  to  these  His  laws,  by  .  ..uug 
oonnior  command. 

It  is  needless  to  state,  that  if  any  such  counter 
command  were  ever  given,  the  proclamation 
would  not  be  posted  in  quarters  likely  to  necessi- 
tate any  great  researeh. 

160. 

The  mandate  "Go  ye  therefore  and  teach  all 


114  SOME  FEATURES  OF  THE  FAITH. 

nations,  baptizing  them  in  the  name  of  the  Father, 
and  of  the  Son,  and  of  the  Holy  Ghost,"  was  given 
by  our  Lord  to  men  who  were  Jews,  and  who,  as 
Jews,  were  as  sure  that  children  were  meant,  as 
that  they  themselves  were:  and  Uierefore,  instead 
of  there  being  any  force  in  the  objection  "There  is 
no  command  in  scripture  to  baptize  infants"  (a 
cavil  which  need  not  stop  here  but  might  also  add 
that  there  is  no  command  to  baptize  women,  nor  to 
admit  women  to  the  Holy  Communion,  nor  any 
command  to  worship  God  on  the  first  day  of  the 
week),  instead  of  there  being  force  in  this  objec- 
tion, we  can  more  reasonably  say  that  since  there 
is  not  only  no  command  in  the  canonical  Script- 
ures against  it,  against  this  strong  current  of 
God-given  custom,  but  not  so  much  as  a  question 
as  to  whether  that  current  shall  be  allowed  to  flow 
on,  we  have  warranty  enough  at  least  to  expect 
that  there  was  no  attempt  made  to  stem  the  tide. 

And  so  we  go  from  the  words,  and  more  sig- 
nificantly, the  absence  of  words,  of  the  writers  of 
the  New  Testament,  to  the  acts  of  these  inspired 
men,  and  their  immediate  successors. 

And  here  we  must  emphasize  the  fact  that  we 
do  not  go  to  these  early  Christians,  successors  of 
the  apostles,  for  their  opinion  of  what  ought  to  be, 
or  to  have  been,  for  in  this,  modern  opinion  may 


SOME  FEATUBES  OF  THt  FAITH.  115 

be  as  good  as  theirs;  but  we  go  to  them  for  what 
they  saw  with  their  eyes  to  be  the  custom  of  the 
Church  in  their  time. 

In  this  way  we  get  to  know  what  the  apostles 
did,  and  that  which  the  apostles  did,  is  as  author- 
itative as  what  the  apostles  said,  or  say. 

§61. 

It  is  wholly  inconceivable  that  men  with  the 
apostles'  knowledge  of  God's  law-when  thev  came 
to  execute  their  commission  and  make  Christians 
of  all  nations-should  do  such  violence  to  their 
inclinations  as  to  pass  children  by,  and  this  with- 
out the  slightest  authority  from  our  Lord,and  with- 
out their  own  making  the  faintest  reference  in  any 
of  their  writings  to  such  a  momentous  precedent 
We  read  that  they,  in  more  than  one  instance 
baptized  whole  households,  and  no  hint  is  given  us 
of  this  unheard  of  exclusion  of  the  young  (Acts 
xvi.  15,  33;  I.  Cor.  i.  16).  ^  « 

Did  they  exclude  them  i    Let  us  call  in  the 
Witnesses. 

§62. 

Justin  Martyr,  in  a  work  which  he  wrote-  less 
than  fifty  years  after  the  death  of  the  last  of  the 
ap^tles,  tells  us :  "There  were  among  Christians 
m  his  time  many  persons  of  both  sexes,  some  sixtv 
and  some  seventy  years  old,  who  had  been  ma.h. 


116  80MK  FEATURES  OF  THE  FAITH. 

disciples  to  Christ  in  their  infancy."  lie  makes 
Baptism  to  be  the  Christian  Circumcision  (and 
therefore  as  much  an  ordinance  for  children  as 
circumcision  was,  Lev.  xii.  3),  saying,  "We  have 
not  received  that  carnal  circumcision  but  the  spir- 
itual circumcision  whidi  Enodi  and  those  like 
him  observed,  and  we  have  received  it  by  Baptism, 
throu^  the  mercy  of  God, because  we  were  sinners, 
and  it  is  incumbent  on  all  persons  to  receive  it  in 
the  same  way." 

Iremeus,  Bishop  of  Lyons,  born  within  the  first 
century,  was  a  disciple  of  Polycarp,  who  was  a 
disciple  of  St.  John. 

Seventy-six  years  after  St.  John's  death,  being 
then  nearly  eighty  years  old,  Irenaens  wrote  his 
book  "Against  Heresies."  In  this  book  he  says: 
'•The  appointed  way  of  escape  from  the  guilt  of 
original  sin  is  Baptism,"  which,  he  adds,  is  our 
regeneration,  or  new  birth  unto  God.  "For,"  says 
he,  "Christ  came  to  save  all  persons  by  Himself, 
all  I  say  who  by  Him  are  regenerated  unto  God 
— ^infants  and  little  ones  and  children  and  youths 
and  elder  persons ;  therefore  He  went  through  the 
several  ages,  being  made  an  infant  for  infants, 
that  He  might  sanctify  infants;  and  for  little  ones 
He  was  made  a  little  one  to  sanctify  them  of  that 
age  also." 


SOME  FEATURES  OF  THE  FAITU.  117 

"No  art,"  says  Bingham,  from  whom  we  take 
the  above,  "can  elude  this  passage,  so  long  as  it 
is  owned  that  Regeneration  means  Baptism:  and 
for  this  we  have  the  explication  of  Irenajus  him- 
self, who  calls  Baptism  by  the  name  of  Regenera- 
tion. 

In  the  age  of  Irena?us  then,  that  is,  in  the  sec- 
ond century,  it  was  plainly  the  common  practice 
of  ih-  Church  to  baptize  infants. 

Tertullian  lived  in  tlie  latter  part  of  the  sec- 
ond century  and  the  beginning  of  the  third.  He 
is  a  peculiar  witness,  and  gives  his  t(>stiniony  in 
an  indirect  but  very  effective  manner. 

We  have  remarked  that  it  is  not  for  the  opin- 
ions of  these  ancient  writers  that  we  go  to  them 
concerning  this  subject,  but  in  order  that  we  may 
interrogate  them  as  to  what  they  saw  and  knew 
to  be  the  custom  of  the  Church  in  their  days. 

The  peculiarity  of  Tertullian's  witness  to  In- 
fant Baptism  as  being  a  custom  of  the  Church  in 
his  (lays,  is  that  it  is  all  his  ovm  individual  and 
privat<>  opinion  that  he  gives  us,  whic'h,as  such, 
IS  of  no  use  to  us;  but  its  value  to  us  lies  in  its 
possessing  also  the  character  of  evidence,  and  tliat 
of  the  very  best  kind:  for  he  argues  against  the 
common  practice  of  the  Chureli,  and  tries  to 
change  it  to  his  own  way  of  thinking,  which  was. 


118 


SOMK  FEATUBE8  OF  THE  FAITH. 


that  not  only  inf  ints,  but  all  persons  that  are  un- 
married or  in  widowhood,  ought  to  be  excluded 
from  Baptism.  Tertullian,  who  became  and  con- 
tinued until  his  death  a  leader  of  the  heretical 
Montanist  sect,  is  thus  the  first  great  advocate 
for  the  exclusion  of  children  from  the  sacrament  of 
Baptism. 

Origen  lived  and  flourished  a  few  years  later 
than  Tertullian  in  the  early  part  of  the  third  cen- 
tury. He  says:  "Everyone  is  bom  in  original 
sin.  What  is  the  reason  why  the  Baptism  of  the 
Church  which  is  given  for  the  remission  of  sins, 
is  bv  tlio  custom  of  the  Church  given  to  infants 
also  (  Infants  are  baptized  because  by  the  sacra- 
ment of  Baptism  the  pollution  of  our  birth  is 
taken  away.  Except  one  be  born  of  water  and  of 
the  Spirit,  he  cannot  enter  into  the  Kingdom  of 
Heaven."  He  says  again  that  "the  Church  re- 
ceived the  order  of  baptizing  infants  from  the 
apostles."* 

*  "The  fathers  who  lived  at  the  end  of  .^^  second  century, 
however  mxuA  they  were  nilaed  aboTe  their  predeceeaom  In 
power  and  range  of  thought,  were  trained  by  that  earlier  gener- 
ation which  they  surpassed.  They  made  no  claims  to  any  fresh 
diecoTerlee  la  Chrlitlan  troth :  <hi  the  contrary  they  affirmed  as 
their  chief  glory  timt  they  retained  unchanged  the  tradition  of 
the  apostolic  age.  Their  testimony  is  the  clear  expression  of 
aa  earlier  (alth,  and  not  the  aractclatloB  ot  novel  dedactlona. 
They  are  the  Interpretors  of  the  past  and  not  the  mouthpieces 
of  a  revolution"  (Westcott,  The  Bible  in  the  Church,  p.  120). 


80MK  FEATI-RES  OF  THE  I.\\ITII. 

§63. 


119 


These  therefore  are  the  men  whom  we  have 
put  into  the  box  to  tell  us  what  they  saw  the 
Church  do— the  Church  which  Christ  came  to  es- 
tablish on  earth,  which  existed  for  a  quarter  of  a 
century  before  a  word  of  the  New  Testament  was 
committed  to  writing,  and  which  in  its  various 
centres  was  the  carefully  organized  and  governed 
body  for  which  the  literature  which  now  forms  the 
New  Testament  was  casually  written ;  the  Church, 
which,  all  the  while  cherishing  them,  never  until 
the  year  89T,  at  Carthage,  counted  the  number  of 
these,  her  Uterary  treasures.    We  have  called  the 
best  and  earliest  witnesses  to  tell  us  what  her  cus- 
tom was  with  regard  to  Baptism,  and  they  have 
told  US  that  she  never  excluded  children  from  that 
sacrament. 


CHAPTER  X. 


§64. 

SIK  AFTKB  BAPTISM. 

COOKING  horn  the  blighted  Eden,  and  guided 
by  Beirelation,  we  have  beheld  the  Saviour  of 
mankind,  and  have  liatraed  to  and  weighed  the 
gracioug  terms  He  offered  to  a  lost  world. 

We  stood  upon  the  threshold  of  that  bright  hope 
which  (as  superseding  all  those  promising  ambi- 
tions which  have  been  generated  naturally  in  the 
fertile  imagination  of  every  age  of  Adamic  his- 
tory), one  came  down  from  the  right  hand  of  God 
to  deliver.  This  threshold,  Baptism,  opened  up  to 
us  almost  the  full  outlook  from  the  original  Para- 
dise. But  now,  Eden-like,  and  human  still,  we 
have  to  contemplate  failure  even  in  this  state  of 
restoration. 

As  the  glory  of  Eden  was  its  possibilities,  so 
Baptism,  our  new  Eden  as  it  were,  is  (though  we 


SOME  FEATUEES  OF  THE  FAITH. 


121 


often  use  concerning  it  language  which  might  con- 
vey unfounded  ideas  of  present  achievement),  iike- 
wise  only  desirable  for  the  proepecave  reasons 

which  exalted  Paradise. 

This  strength  of  language  must  not  shock  us, 
for  Baptism  duly  considered  must  be  acknowl- 
edged to  be  either  much,  or  nothing. 

It  certainly,  and  it  alone,  admits  to  our  normal 
Godward  development. 


§66. 

Baptism,  in  its  true  representation  supposes 
faithfulness.    When,  however,  we  view  the  goal 
which  Baptism  points  to,  and  thon  survey  the  hosts 
who  ought  to  be,  each  and  all,  vigorously  pushing 
forward  to  that  point;  and  when  we  see  from  un- 
mistakable evidence  that  the  majority  have  not 
chosen  so  to  exert  themselves;  when  a  voice  of 
authority  sums  up  the  failures  as  "the  many," 
and  the  successful  as  "the  few,"  it  becomes  our 
duty  to  examine  this  second  gloom  which  has  set- 
tled over  the  race,  and  to  search  diligently  for 
the  light  that  must  exist  to  dispel  it. 

Baptism  supposes  faithfulness,  and  we  have 
reason  and  the  highest  authority  for  believing 
that  the  many  are  wanting  in  this  faithfulness; 
and  consequently,  if  they  persist  in  their  present 


122  SOME  FEATUBES  OF  THE  FAITH. 

unacceptable  methods,  th^  must  inevitably  be  lost 
to  the  hope  of  Christians. 

We  shall  easily  be  able  to  run  a  dividing  line 
between  those  who  have,  and  those  who  lack,  this 
faithfulness,  if  we  ask  of  all  professing  Christ- 
ians whether  thej  truly  make  the  expressed  will 
of  the  Saviour  of  the  world  their  supreme  law, 
and  use  every  energy  within  them  towards  the 
accomplishment  of  the  great  double  task  which 
Christianity  presents  to  all  its  members,  namely, 
to  learn  this  law,  and  to  cany  it  out 

Eadi  man  can  ai^  this  question  for  himself 
and  of  himself,  and  according  to  the  honest  reply 
of  oonscienoe,  can  take  his  position  on  the  one  or 
the  other  side  of  the  line,  standing  thus  by  antici- 
pation "on  the  right  hand"  or  "on  the  left." 

The  success  of  the  graft,  in  tree  culture,  is  con- 
ditional upon  the  subsequent  due  care  that  all  be 
done  to  further  its  effectiveness,  and  to  prevent 
accident. 

The  success  of  Baptism  is  dependent  upon  the 
fulfilment  of  the  entire  Apostolic  Commission 
of  making  Christians  by  baptizing  them,  and  then 
"teaching  them  to  observe  all  things  whatsoever" 
the  Saviour  commanded. 

This,  reduced  to  its  elements  by  our  Lord  Him- 
self, is,  loving  God  with  all  the  heart,  soul, 


SOMJi  rXATVBM  OW  TOM  FAITH.  123 

ttrangth,  and  mind;  and  loving  our  neighbor  as 
onnehas.  Thi.  is  the  principle  of  thnt  new  life 
to  which  we  ara  required  to  oMifonn,  and  ereiy 
hostile,  every  contrary  tendwwy  to  which,  mnat 
be  abandoned,  or  obitmction  in  the  branch  is 
produced. 


§66. 

The  presence  in  the  world  of  much  that  is  beau- 
tiful, of  much  even  that  is  moraUy  inviting,  must 
not  be  allowed  to  withdraw  our  attention  from  the 
one  permissible  test  of  requisite  faithfulness  : 
namely,  a  conscious,  pervading  loyalty  to  the  per- 
son  and  plan  of  Christ  the  Saviour. 

That  the  home-life  with  which  we  are  ac- 
quainted, and  which  characterizes  Christian  peo- 
ples of  the  present  time  does  not  call  loudly  for 
reformation;  that  there  is  filial  duty  and  rever- 
ence abounding  stiU  in  response  to  wise  and  worthy 
parental  government ;  and  that  there  is  not  wanting 
satisfactory  evidence  that  the  .sacredness  of  this 
relationship  is  understood  and  felt  to^ay,  very 
much  as  it  ought  to  be-all  this  must  not  be  al- 
lowed  to  decide  the  question  of  Christian  or  un- 
Christian  for  us. 

There  is  reason  to  belie .  e  that  a  just  survey  of 
the  motives  that  maintain  the  heavy  machinery 


184 


SOMS  rXATVSBS  OF  THS  FAITH. 


of  the  world  in  activity — legislation,  commerce, 
education — will  find  a  large,  a  very  large  element 
of  excellence,  even  faultlessness,  to  set  down  to 
the  credit  of  our  times.  In  daily  life  we  meet 
with  honesty  quite  as  often  at  iMft  as  with  its 
opposite;  and  it  is  not  a  proven  fact  that  there 
is  an  overwhelming  or  even  marked  tendency 
among  us  to  hatred  and  strife. 

Kindliness  and  geniality  of  disposition,  so  far 
from  being  wanting  among  us,  are  tempers  that  are 
universally  aspired  to. 

Yes,  even  beneficence  is  evinced  in  a  manner 
beyond  all  cavil — hospitals  are  endowed  and  main- 
tained, and  churches  built;  but  yet  all  this  may 
not  mean  true  Christianity,  may  not  be  an  exhibi- 
tion by  the  branches  of  the  life  which  they  have 
drawn  from  the  vine. 

It  may  all  mean  little  .  ^re  than  Criraelcss- 
ness — in  any  case  a  negative  quality,  so  far  as  the 
religion  of  Christ  is  concerred. 

It  is  certainly  not  the  faithfuLiess  required 
by  the  Savaour,  unless  it  proceed  from  the  internal 
motive  principle  of  the  new  life  as  it  is  in  Jesus 
Christ,  i.e.,  from  love  to  God  and  man,  in  con- 
scious, loving  obedience  to  the  expressed  will  of 
the  Redeemer ;  apart  from  whom  we  can  do  noth- 
ing. 


MOMK  FKATI  UKH  OK  TUB  KAITU.  125 

g  67. 

OIOBK88IOX  OJf  FAITUPI7I.XB88. 

Here  let  us  pause  to  jealously  analyze  this 
"faithfulness"  which  is  a  necessity,  lest  we  seem 
to  give  encouragement  to  the  notion  which  springs 
"P  again  and  again  from  the  latent  Judaism  in  us 

all,  ind  insinuates  the  possibility,  even  the  neces- 
sity, of  our  achieving  some  kind  of  worthiness  for 
ourselves  and  by  ourselves,  before  God. 

A  brief  review  of  the  parable  of  the  "Laborers 
iu  the  vineyard"  will  supply  the  best  tonic  to  the 
prevalent  morbid  tendency  of  tlic  mind  here. 

The  laborers,  hired  early  in  the  morning  and 
at  the  third,  the  sixth,  the  ninth,  and  the  eleventh 
hours,  plainly  refer  in  the  application  of  the 
parable  to  Christians  of  our  day,  to  the  entrance 
of  disciples  of  Christ  upon  His  service,  at  periods 
of  life  proportioned  to  the  earliness  or  advance- 
ment m  the  day  of  the  respective  hours  of  employ- 
ment  mentioned. 

The  penny  promised  to  the  earUest  laborers. 
IS  the  riches  of  the  gospel. 

men  the  evening  arrives,  and  with  it  the 
hour  of  payment,  those  who  worked  but  one  hour 
are  called,  and  given  a  penny  each ;  later,  the  first 
employed  come  forward  and  are  also  given  a  penny 


196 


toum  rxATUBSft  of  thb  faith. 


This  reception  by  these  men,  of  their  penuy, 
which  they  now  view  in  the  lij^t  oi  eompftriwrn 
with  that  which  the  eleventh  hour  laboran  re- 
ceived, produces  a  state  of  mind  which  finds  vent 
in  munmiring  and  complaint 

Now  this  state  of  mind  is  permissible  and  alto* 
gether  blanjcless,  if  it  can  shown  {evxn  any  thing 
said  or  fairly  implied  in  the  hiring,  that  the  ser- 
vice they  are  cngafjed  to  render  is  the  just  equiva- 
lent of  tlie  payment  offered.  But  no  such  state- 
ment is  made,  and  no  such  thing  is  implied. 

§68. 

In  opposition  to  the  service  of  the  world,  which 
worldlings  may  begin  to  find  not  so  remunerative 
as  they  had  hojwd,  or  as  they  never  doubted  it 
would  be,  the  summons  from  the  Divine  House- 
holder, to  labor  in  His  Vineyard  for  a  good,  a 
real  and  sure  reward,  is  made,  indeed ;  but  even  in 
this  forcing  of  an  unmercenary  matter  into  the 
mold  of  a  money  affair,  in  order  to  appeal  to  those 
who  present  no  more  favorable  side,  there  is  no 
gronnd  given  for  the  belief  that  if  s<nne  laborers 
are  swayed  by  merely  mercenary  motives,  the 
Householder  must  be. 

Those  who  made  what  they  firmly  believed 
to  be  a  hard  and  fast  bargain  of  so  much  work 
for  so  much  pay,  veril;  have  their  reward:  and 


•0M»  nUTVKXS  OF  THB  FAJTJI.  127 

they  are,  regarding  matters  from  their  point  of 
Tiew,  not  unnaturally  dissatiafied  with  it,  with 
their  fellow  laborers,  and  particularly  with  their 
employer;  nor  the  less  so  because  they  hare  no 
actionable  case  against  anybody. 

But  the  feeblest  perception  could  not  have 

failed  to  i»e  that  the  payment  wa.  not  merely  the 

jMt  measure  of  the  senrioe  done. 

In  form  it  was  a  peni^y,  but  the  material  was 

gold.    But  here  as  ever,  "none  so  blind  as  those 

who  will  not  see." 

Length  of  service  in  God's  Vineyard,  true 
service  that  is,  takes  away  our  bUndness  and  re- 
stores to  us  accuracy  of  vision. 

We  are  laborers  (or  disciples)  indeed  if  we 
continue  in  the  Saviour's  word,  and  we  shall  know 
the  truth,  and  the  truth  shall  make  us  free  (St 
John  viii.  31,  32).  .AW  what  is  this  trntlu 
which  comes  to  true  laborers  in  the  Vineyard,  and 
which  sets  the  attitude  of  the  murmurers  in  such 
an  evil  light  ? 

It  is  that  the  call  to  the  Vin.vard  is  itself  the 
conferring  of  a  boon,  in  the  verv  possibility  it  pro- 
vides of  doing  the  first  act  deserving  of  anything 

pumshment  It  reveals  to  us  that  man  in  bis 
lost  ccmdition  is  incapable  of  any  good  himself, 
incapable  of  anything  but  actual  self-injurv 


-  i  iliiillrV  .Ktt*k 


128  SOME  FEATUBE8  OF  THE  FAITH. 

In  the  case  of  man  as  in  that  of  the  railway 
locomotive,  the  creator  of  the  mechanism  must 
again  put  his  hand  to  the  work,  or  ruin  settles 
down  forever  on  the  wreck. 

§69. 

The  truth  which  we  shall  know,  and  which 
shall  make  us  free,  teaches  us  that  the  Atonement 
of  the  Saviour  has  again  placed  us  high  upon  the 
pathway  of  our  real  career,  and  that  this  act  of 
mercy  alone  makes  it  possible,  as  we  have  said, 
to  do  anything  right. 

The  labor  of  the  Vineyard  therefore  is  done 
on  ourselves,  in  establishing  within  us  a  wholesome 
consciousness,  a  sober  realization  of  just  where  we 
stand  in  a  universe  of  which  God  is  the  true  and 
acknowledged  centre. 

In  all  God's  Vineyard  there  is  nothing  in  so 
palpable  need  of  having  labor  and  attention  be- 
stowed upon  it  as  we  ourselves. 

The  longer  we  have  labored,  and  the  more 
truly  and  effectively  we  have  wrought,  the  clearer 
will  this  truth  be  revealed  to  us,  the  keener  will  be 
our  spiritual  sight  to  see  ourselves  lifted  by  the 
crucified  arm  of  our  Redeemer  from  the  low  r^on 
whence  the  soul  of  hope  is  fled,  and  placed  once 
more  upon  our  homeward  road. 


SOME  FEATUBES  OP  THE  FAITH.  129 

This  act  of  mercy,  once  perceived,  engrosses 
all  our  thoughts  in  gratitude. 

Everything  we  do  now  becomes  a  separate 
acknowledgment  of  our  glorious  debt,  instead  of 
a  claim  for  the  misconceived  j,avment  of  hire 
The  truth  which  we  have  attained  concerning  our- 
selves, instinctively  inclines  to  favor  the  claim 
of  any  other--even  the  latest  of  the  late  comers 
to  the  heavenly  task-to  a  merit  of  which  we  are 
only  certain  that  we  ourselves  are  undeserving 

Thus  appears  the  fatal  misconception  of  the 
self-valuing  laborers.  Eternal  life  is  indeed  of- 
fered them,  but,  like  vessels  already  full,  thev  can- 
not receive  it,  and  so  it  passes  them  by,  and  "is  lost 
to  them. 

Thus  too,  we  see  something  of  the  meaning  of 
faithfulnes8"-work  in  the  Vineyard  indeed,  but 
work  applied  on  ourselves  and  producing  knowl- 
edge deep  and  true,  of  our  own  proper  unworthi- 
ness,  knowledge  whose  native  language  is  hun.blest 
gratitude. 

The  whole  incident,  from  the  call  in  the  mar- 
ket-place to  the  payment  of  the  last  laborer,  was 
a  »)enefaction.  It  was  the  pressing  needs  of  the 
|nen,  not  those  of  the  employer,  which  prompted 
^l»«r^all,  and  afforded  their  opportunity.* 

•Not*  B. 


130  SOME  FEATURES  OF  THE  FAITH. 

§70. 

If  the  central  interest  of  our  life  springs  from 
our  nnion  with  Christ,  and  draws  its  sustenance 
from  that  one  source  of  our  nobler  life,  as  the 
branch  draws  its  nourishment  from  the  parent  stem 
in  the  vine;  then  all  the  good  we  do  is  Christian 
„ood— fruit  of  the  true  character  to  prove  our  cou- 
dition  as  flourishing  branches  of  that  vine. 

But  unless  we  can  assure  ourselves  of  all  this, 
we  must  set  the  whole  catena  of  pleasing  evidences 
(,f  a  not  unkindly  nature  down  as  godlessness, 
albeit  godlessness  of  a  moral  character  and  lying 
close  on  the  borders  of  Christianity  ;  yet  exactly 
because  of  this,  necessitating  the  clear,  plain  state- 
ment of  fact,  that  it  is  not  within  the  limits  of 
Christianity— that  it  is  not  Christian.* 


•  Note  r. 


CHAPTER  XI. 


§71. 


SIN  AFTEB  BAPTISM  (continued). 

¥  X  THE  presence,  therefore,  of  this  failure, 
■  what  is  there  for  the  many  ?  They  are  still 
following  the  bent  of  the  old,  and  preventing  the 
manifestation  of  the  new  nature.  They  are 
branches  indeed,  and  it  may  be  said,  green 
branches;  but  with  a  life  that  is  deceiving. 

They  are  green  with  the  life  which  they 
brought  to  the  Vine,  not  with  that  which  they  have 
drawn  from  it.  They,  in  short,  exhibit  a  life 
which  it  is  possible  to  possess  without  ever  having 
been  grafted  into  the  Vine. 

From  this  wrong  course,  then,  this  failure  in 
faithfulness,  where  lies  the  path  back  to  the  true 
way  that  was  opened  up  to  us  at  the  font  ? 

Are  the  unfaithful  branches  to  be  cut  oS,  and 


132  SOME  FEATUBE8  OF  THK  FAITH. 

re-grafted  into  the  \'iue  in  the  hope  of  finally  mak- 
ing them  what  they  ought  to  be  i 

Such  a  course,  discountenanced  by  all  knowl- 
edge and  experience  of  the  natural  world,  is,  in  the 
Bpiritual  world— the  world  restored  by  the  Saviour 
and  therefore  the  very  natural  world— -not  less 

utterly  proscribed. 

The  figure  of  the  Vine,  on  which  our  Saviour 
would  have  us  rivet  our  attention,  is  to  be  adhered 
to  in  nothing  more  closely  than  in  this  feature  of 
permitting,  by  its  very  nature,  no  second  grafting 
of  a  branch. 

Baptism  is  never  repeated  by  the  Church.* 
What  birth  is  to  the  natural  life,  Baptism  is  to  the 
Christian  life,  i.e.,  the  entrance  upon  it. 

If  the  spiritual  birth  bring  forth  a  weak  and 
sickly  being,  a  disappointment  to  bright  hopes, 
we  cannot  here,  any  more  than  in  the  natural  life, 
seek  a  betterment  of  things  by  that  impossibility, 
the  repetition  of  the  birth. 

Is  this  "unfaithfulness,"  then,  irreparable? 


•  "8t.  Jerom*  oIwerveB  that  ttaoogh  there  were  many  here- 
tics In  the  apostles'  days,  as  the  Nlcolaltans  and  othew,  yet 
there  was  no  command  given  to  re-baptlze  them  upon  their  re- 
pentance. And  Optatua  make*  the  unity  of  Circumcision 
good  argument  for  the  unity  of  Baptism,  In  which  both  the 
Cfttholloa  and  'he  Donatists  agreed'  (Blnghwn'a  AntiquiUeii, 
Vol.  IV.,  Bk.  XII.,  p.  82). 


80MK  FEATITRES  OK  THK  lAITII.  133 

Is  there  any  or  no  hope  for  those  who  are  guilty 
of  it  ?  for  the  manv  ( 

A  wrong  committed  can,  in  one  sense,  certainly 
never  be  undone.    It  becomes,  <„i  the  instant,  his- 
tory, in  a  record  whose  accuracy  is  faultless  and 
enduring.    It  cannot  conceivably  be  erased.  It 
cannot  either  be  worked  out  by  any  intensity  of 
future  effort  on  the  part  of  the  offender.  All 
idea  of  reparation  is  here  absolutely  barred.  Each 
moment  demands  our  utmost.    We  have  there- 
fore no  present  tliin<;  to  offer,  and  no  certain  future 
to  draw  upon.    The  only  hope  which  the  nature 
of  the  case  admits  of,  is  pardon.    We  are  utterly 
and  absolutely  dei)endent  on  the  disposition  of 
llini  in  whose  hands  wc  are.     The  knowledge, 
therefore,  of  that  disposition,  is  a  tliii.f.'  <,f  para- 
mount iniportance  to  nxen  in  our  situation. 

§72. 

For  tlie  angels  who  sinned  and  fell  from  their 
high  estate,  there  is  not,  so  far  as  we  can  find,  any 
hope  of  pardon.  With  them  no  parley  is  held; 
no  desire  expressed  for  their  return. 

With  man,  however,  there  is  a  difference.  Ilia 
case  is  chosen  for  a  peculiar  manifestation  of 
Divine  mercy.  It  is  the  bright  side  of  the 
Church's  mission,  that  she  is  sent  to  make  this 
fifreat  fact  known  to  mankind. 


134  SOME  FEATUBE8  OF  THE  FAITH. 

With  man  in  his  temporary  wanderings  from 
his  God  and  Father,  parley  is  indeed  held.  Evi- 
dence of  this  is  abundantly  given  in  the  revelation 
God  has  given  us  of  His  will.  The  whole 
texture  of  Holy  Scripture  is  interwoven  with  this 
exceptional  concession. 

§73. 

The  ingrafting  into  the  Church  does  not  mean 
that  the  whole  bent  and  tendency  of  the  Adamic 
nature  are  obUterated,  and  that  that  nature  itself 
is  extinct. 

The  language  of  Scripture  concerning  this 
union  with  Christ  leaves  nothing  to  be  desired  as 
to  the  clearness  of  its  meaning.  It  is  the  birth 
of  a  new  nature,  not  upon  the  rains  altogether  of 
the  old,  but  side  by  side  with  that  natural  but  now 
subordinate  life. 

It  is,  however,  the  building  of  a  new  hope  on 
the  ruins  of  the  old  hope.  As  to  the  two  natures 
and  their  relativity,  the  new  must  increase,  but  the 
old  must  decrease.  Growth  and  decay  must  go 
on  together.  As  in  the  natural  world,  so  here, 
nothing  is  done  at  a  bound.  The  old  nature, 
even  in  its  dying  throes,  will  assert  itself ;  but  it 
must  never  be  given,  as  of  old,  the  reins  of  govern- 
ment. 


SOME  FEATUBES  OF  THE  FAITH.  135 

Conflicts,  therefore,  between  these  two  forces 
within  us,  mu3t  be  expected,  and  even  when  victory 
lies  with  the  old  nature  against  the  new,  all  is  not 
lost;  the  decision  is  not  final,  and  the  plan  by 
which  the  Saviour  would  restore  the  world  to 
happiness  ard  to  God  does  not  yet  fall  short. 

§74. 

In  that  adequate  plan  such  possibilities  have 
been  anticipated.    It  is  the  Church's  responsible 
task  to  see  tliat  all  things  whatsoever  the  Saviour 
has  commanded  are  observed  after  admission  has 
been  made  into  Christianity;  that  the  spirit  of  the 
new  life,  and  not  that  of  the  old,  be  followed  :  tliat 
is  practically,  that  Christian  teaching  as  we  have 
noted  above  be  poured  upon  the  new  "branch" 
from  the  Church  directly,  and  indirectly  through 
the  filter  of  home  influence.    Where"^  this  has 
been  wanting  or  unimproved,  there  remains  the 
possibility  of  a  chance  meeting  (humanly  speak- 
ing) at  some  angle  of  life's  road,  with  one  of  those 
stern  preachers  of  righteousness  whom  God  sends 
through  the  world  upon  the  last  errand  of  mercy 
to  men,  "sorrow,  need,  sickness,  or  any 

other  adversity." 

Whether,  therefore,  by  the  ordinary  ministra- 
tions of  religion  in  the  world,  that  is  to  say,  by  the 
Church;  or  through  the  extraordinary  ministra- 


i;ifi  SOME  KKATrKKS  OF  THE  FAITH. 

tions  of  direst  dealing  by  affliction,  that  godless 
(Christians  may  be  brought  to  see  the  error  of  their 
ways,  they  have  only  a  little  seeking  to  do  in  order 
to  discover  tliat  their  case  is  remediable;  for  man 
in  sncli  case  is  invited  to  reflect;  to  think  his 
whole  attitude  over,  and  see  if  he  cannot  find  out, 
and,  finding  out,  justly  estimate  bh  irregularities. 

And  what  can  this  mean,  but  that  hope  has 
W)t  been  cut  off;  that  the  final  seal  has  not  been 
set  to  his  doom,  nor  that  dread  order  yet  gone  forth 
— "Cut  it  down ;  why  cumbereth  it  the  ground  2" 

§  75. 

Sin  after  Baptism  is,  therefore,  assuredly 
within  the  range  of  the  pardoning  love  of  God. 

But  that  promise  implied  in  the  continuous 
appeal  which  Holy  Scripture  makes  to  all  men, 
baptized  and  unbaptized  alike,  to  consider  their 
ways,  it  is  guaranteed ;  and  the  force  of  these  re- 
iterated appeals  must  not  be  overlooked,  for  it 
is  God,  who  cannot  lie,  who  makes  these  astound- 
ing propositions  to  mankind,  these  exceptional 
invitations;  and  in  every  place  where  such  mes- 
sa^i's  are  heard,  the  will  of  "our  Father  which  art 
in  Heaven"  is  made  known. 

Therefore  if  God  inspires  and  commands  such 
reasoning  with  those  who,  having  been  duly  made 


SOME  PEATUSES  OP  THE  PAITH.  137 

raombcrs  of  Christ,  have  not  continued  such;  in 
a  word,  if  God  directly  or  indirectly  urges  un- 
worthy Christians  to  realize  their  perilous  posi- 
tion, His  doing  so  carries  with  it  the  hope  that  if 
they  heed,  they  may  still  avert  the  danger  pointed 
out  to  them,  and  give  themselves  to  better  coun- 
sels. 

God's  action  can  only  be  the  doing  of  a  friend 
who  exhorts  and  warns  in  time;  and  not  that  of 
an  enemy  who  uses  a  cruel  duplicity  in  order  to 
mock  at  man's  despair. 

But  beside  this  blessed  and  well  grounded 
hope,  this  promise  by  implication,  we  have  ex- 
pressed assurances  of  the  fullest  and  mose  satisfy- 
ing character. 

Tt  is  a  patent  law  of  God's  dealing  with  men 
that  where  we  can  do  nothing,  nothing  is  de- 
manded; but  when  anytliing  is  to  bo  done  for 
wliich  God  has  given  us  talents  or  capacity  in  the 
slightest  degree,  tlion  cooperation  on  our  part  is 
looked  for.  In  other  words,  we  are  only  to  pray 
for  the  granting  to  us  of  chjects  which  lie  still 
beyond  us,  after  our  whole  energy  has  been  exerted 
in  their  direction  and  has  proved  itself  insufficient. 
We  must  not  stretch  our  arm  over  unused  power 
within  ourselves  to  appropriate  that  of  Heaven. 
The  man  in  the  parable  who  stands  as  the  type 


138  80MK  I-KATUBES  OF  THE  FAITH. 

of  this  kind  of  religion,  and  who  kept  his  talent 
wrapped  up  in  a  napkin  instead  of  using  it  to  the 
best  advantage,  met  with  conspicuous  coudemiui- 
tion. 

§76. 

And  with  r^rd  to  the  expressed  promise  of 
forgiveness  to  sinning  Christians,  we  find  that  man 
desiring  forgiveness  of  his  sins  is  himself  first 
expected  to  do  something  towards  that  end — to  do 
what  he  can.  He  must  forgive  his  brother;  and 
only  on  the  fulfilment  of  this  condition,  look  for 
the  granting  of  his  own  prayer  for  pardon.  Our 
Lord  and  Saviour  Jesus  Christ  says  (St.  Matt, 
vi.  14):  "If  ye  forgive  men  their  trespasses, 
your  heavenly  Father  will  also  forgive  you." 

That  the  promise  is  thus  conditional,  only 
means  that  it  is  real  and  valid.  This  is  the  only 
form  in  which  it  could  be  expressed  to  be  of  any 
use  to  us.  Any  otherwise  it  would  be  an  evidence 
of  building  without  regard  to  the  character  of  the 
foundation ;  of  building  possibly  on  the  sand,  or, 
worse,  on  a  shifting  morass  of  sinful  mindedness. 

When  we  see  the  kind  of  structure — ihe  only 
conceivable  one — that  is  reared  on  such  unsuitabU; 
ground,  we  cannot  wonder  that  God  refuses  to 
countenance  this  species  of  spiritual  architecture. 

The  parable  of  The  Unmerciful  Servant  sup- 


SOME  FKATtJSGS  OF  TUE  FAITH.  V  J 


plies  the  faithful  picture  of  thi«  kind  of  building, 
and  nobody  bu  ever  been  known  to  be  altracted 

hj  it 

§  77. 

Our  Lord  says  again:  "And  when  ye  stand 
praying,  forgive  if  ye  have  aught  against  any, 
that  your  Father  also  which  is  in  Heaven  may 
forgive  your  trespasses.  But  if  ye  do  not  forgive, 
neither  will  your  Father  which  is  in  Heaven  for- 
give your  trespa880B." 

There  is  a  wholeaomeness  about  the  commands 
of  God  which  show  them  to  be,  to  the  observing, 
something  more  than  the  arbitrary  requirements 
of  the  Qovemor  of  the  universe. 

The  more  we  know  of  them,  the  readier  we  are 
to  acknowledge  that  the  name  by  which  we  are 
Divinely  instructed  to  address  the  Almighty  is 
no  religious  unreality,  but  one  that  cordially  in- 
vites us  to  fill  it  with  deepest  and  truest  meaning. 

The  great  laws  of  God  in  religion,  like  His 
other  laws  which  bid  us  satisfy  our  hunger  by 
eating  and  our  weariness  by  rest,  are  only  the 
wisest  preservatives  of  our  moat  priceless  and 
present  interests. 

We  have  eaid  that  the  knowledge  of  earthly 
fathers  is  a  relationship  which,  by  a  magic  of  its 


140  BOME  KEATURE«  OF  THE  FAITH. 


own,  is  not  unknown  to  tranafom  hard  obedience 
into  a  sense  of  aweet  inysterioua  wisdom.  But  if 
we  do  not  knoir  that  tlio  mnn  who  commands  us 
is  our  father,  and  have  only  been  told  it,  the  naked 
law  of  self-preservation  alone  would  go  far  towards 
making  us  refuse  to  trust  ourselves  to  ways  of 
which  we  are  ignorant,  and  into  whose  design, 
good  and  profit  to  us  may  not  enter.  The  require- 
ment that  we  shall  forgive  our  brother  is  open 
to  this  misconception.  In  lookinf?  upon  this 
fundamental  law  of  God  the  Father  and  our  Lord 
Jesus  Christ  as  a  stern  "eye-for-an-e_vp"  onactiiicnt, 
a  tliinj^  after  cons^'ionce's  own  heart,  we  alt(^ether 
lose  sight  of  its  splendid  uscfiilness  to  us. 

The  infinite  difficulty  (of  which  more  later) 
of  l)eings  constituted  as  we  are,  with  conscience 
dealing  out  inexorable  justice  to  us,  believing  in 
the  forgiveness  of  sins,  is  wondroualy  lessened 
by  one  downright  act  of  forgiveness  on  our  part. 
For  the  ailment  it  supplies  is  electrical,  and 
opens  up  a  luminous  way  to  belief  in  Qod^s  for- 
giveness of  us,  and  this  is  the  argument:  I,  a 
sinful  man,  have  held  myself  well  in  hand,  and 
completely  forgiven  a  deliberate  wrong,  viciously 
done  against  myself,  and  I  have  also  further  duti- 
fislly  ]>rayod  for  the  door.  What  is  pnssi^^  ta 
a  nature  like  mine,  is  easily  possible  to  viod.  The 


SOMIE  FXATUBX8  OF  THE  FAITH.  141 

reality  of  my  true  act  givea  me  appreciation  of 
the  reality  of  Ood'a. 

§78. 

Ill  addition  to  tlu'se  promises  of  tlie  Saviour, 
wo  have  the  passage  in  St.  James  (v.  14,  If)): 
"Is  any  sick  among  you  ?  Let  him  call  for  the- 
elders  of  the  Church,  and  let  them  pray  over  li  m, 
anointing  him  with  oil  in  the  name  of  the  Lord, 
and  the  prayer  of  faith  shall  save  the  sick  and 
the  Lord  shall  raise  him  up,  and  if  he  have  com- 
mitted sins,  they  shall  be  forgiven  him."  These, 
and  many  other  portions  of  Holy  Scripture,  «how 
the  foundation  an<l  warranty  there  is  for  the 
r'hurch'a  belief  in  the  forgiveness  of  sins  after 
Baptism. 

But  besides  implied  and  expressed  promises  of 
forgiveness,  there  is  one  incident  in  the  gospel 
history  which  puts  the  matter  before  our  eyes  in 
a  way  that  entirely  convinces  i...  rivetin.-"^  upo.. 
the  memory,  by  every  feature  of  the  wcasion.  .mm- 
conviction  of  the  forgiveness  of  sins  in  the  easi; 
of  baptized  Christians. 

When  Peter  with  curses  and  swearing  consum- 
mated that  terrible  sin  of  his,  it  is  said  our  Lord 
looked  at  him;  but  that  look,  though  charged  witli 
"n:5tt(  ra})}e  sorrow  and  some  reproof,  was  not  the 
tiashiiig  of  eternal  condemnation  upon  the  fallen 


142  80MB  FBATUM8  OF  THE  FAITH. 

apostle.  So  far  waa  this  from  being  the  case,  that 
we  find  the  same  apostle,  after  this,  enjoying  the 
undoubted  approval  and  favor  of  his  Lord. 

In  the  final  scene  in  St.  John's  gospel,  where 
the  resurrection  appearances  of  our  Lord  are  viv- 
idly given,  it  is  to  St.  Peter  who  thrice  denied  his 
Saviour,  that  Jesus  turns,  and,  as  if  in  significant 
vet  merciful  reference  to  that  defection,  thrice 
asks  the  question,  "Lovest  thou  Me  ?"  Then,  on 
the  confession  of  loyal  affection  three  times  as- 
serted, the  Lord  gives  him  his  apostolic  commis- 
sion, not  only  as  fully  as  any  other  of  the  apostles 
received  it,  but  in  language  about  which  there 
clings  something  that  would  seem  to  indicate  a 
peculiar  tenderness  and  confidence;  "Feed  My 
sheep" ;  "Feed  My  lambs." 

"St  Peter's  denial,  his  repentance,  and  his  be- 
ing restored  to  his  apostolical  dignity,  seem  to  be 
recorded  partly  on  this  account:  to  encourage  us 
even  after  the  most  heinous  offences,  to  return  to 
God,  and  never  to  reckon  our  condition  desperate, 
were  our  sins  ever  so  many,  but  as  we  find  our 
hearts  hardened  in  them  into  an  obstinate  impeni- 
tency."    (Bishop  Burnet.) 

The  work  of  proving  that  there  are  in  Scripture 
abundant  groimds  for  the  general  hope  of  man's 
forgiveness  at  the  hands  of  God,  is  of  course  not 


SOME  FEATURES  OF  THE  FAITH.  143 

at  all  our  present  business;  but  the  quite  difficult 
task  of  learning  how  far  that  hope  is  to  be  author- 
itativelj  extended  to  those  who  have  sinned  wil- 
fully after  regeneration  and  birth  by  Baptism  into 
the  family  and  household  of  God. 

In  continuance  of  this  momentous  inquiry  we 
.l,all  only  briefly  refer  to  the  following  few  out  of 
unmerons  passages  of  Scripture  that  make  for 
hopefulness  even  here: 

(1)  Our  Lord's  parable  of  the  Prodigal  Son, 
which  shows  us  a  son  of  the  household  going  widely 
wrong,  and  upon  repentance  being  restored. 

(2)  The  power  given  to  the  Church  (Matt 
xviii.  15,  18),  to  bind  and  to  loose  in  the  case 
of  offending  and  repenting  Christians. 

(3)  The  exercise  of  this  power  by  the  Church 
at  Corinth  in  the  case  of  the  member  who  was 
guilty  of  incest,  and  who  by  St.  Paul's  mandate 
was  excommunicated  and  afterwards  restored 
•lest  he  should  be  swaUowed  up  by  overmuch 


sorrow. 


(4)  St.  Paul's  enlargement  of  this  action  into 
H  general  rule  enjoined  upon  the  Galatians: 
Brethren,  if  a  man  be  overtaken  in  a  fault,  ye 
which  are  spiritual  restore  such  an  one  in  the  spirit 
of  meekness ;  considering  thyself,  lest  thou  also  be 
tempted"  (Gal.  vi.  1). 


144  BOMB  FBATUBB8  OF  THE  FAITH. 

(5)  Even  the  case  of  Simon  Magus  is  in  poiat, 
for  just  after  he  was  baptized,  St.  Peter  pre 
nounced  him  to  be  in  "the  gall  of  bitterness  and 
the  bond  of  iniquity."  Yet  his  case  was  not  con- 
sidered hopeless,  for  the  apostle  urged  him  to  re- 
pent of  his  wickedness  and  pray  God  if  perhaps 
the  thought  of  his  heart  might  be  forgiven  him. 

(6)  When  we  reflect  upon  the  character  of 
the  Christian  covenant,  as  far  outstripping  the  an- 
cient covenant  in  mercy  and  true  helpfulness;  and 
when  we  remember  iV  at  under  that  less  gracious 
regimen,David, '  ••■ '«    i^ntance, was  restored  even 
after  the  commi.  ■     of  such  sins  as  murder  and 
adultery  in  their  most  heinous  forms,  we  cannot 
need  a  very  eUborate  demonstration  of  the  fact 
that  the  kingdom  of  grace  does  not  shut  out  hope 
from  the  children  of  God,  who,  having  lapsed  mto 
sin,  seek  again  forgiveness  at  His  hands. 

(7)  The  insertion  by  our  Blessed  Lord  of  the 
petition  in  the  Lord's  Prayer  which  asks,  "Forgive 
us  our  trespasses  as  we  forgive  them  that  trespass 
against  us,"  taken  in  conjunction  with  the  forego- 
ing consideration,  is  enough  to  settle  every  scruple 
on  the  matter  of  the  possibility  of  obtaining  fo^ 
giveness  for  sins  committed  by  the  baptised. 

§79. 

Our  Lord  has  made  our  pardoning  the  offences 


SOME  FSATURE8  OP  THE  PAITII. 


145 


of  others  against  us  the  measure  of  His  forgiving 
lis  our  trespasses,  and  thus  illustrates  His  meaning 
and  purpose  in  making  tliat  petition  an  integral 
part  of  the  Lord's  Prayer;  and  when  one  asked 
Him :  "Lord,  how  oft  shall  my  brother  sin  against 
me  and  I  forgive  him :  till  seven  times  ?"  He  re- 
plied that  the  foigiveness  was  not  to  be  extended 
to  an  offending  brother  seven  times  only;  but  that 
the  limit  was  only  reached  when  we  have  forgiven 
him  four  hundred  and  ninety  times,  and  all  this 
in  one  single  day.  If  our  brother's  »»lfence8  should 
reach  this  huge  number,  yet  if  he  still  turn  and 
rejx'nt,  we  are  bound  to  forgive  him. 

Now  if  our  Lord  makes  this  the  condition  and 
the  extent  of  God's  forgiveness  of  us,  and  bids  the 
children  of  God  draw  on  the  treusury  of  Divine 
forgiveness  by  the  use  of  the  Lord's  Prayer,  we  are 
not  warranted  by  any  eonceivable  argumentation 
or  exegesis  of  other  poidons  of  Scripture,  in 
lessening  the  mercies  of  God  to  that  portion  of  the 
race  whom  He  has  pne^Mtinated  to  Churoh  priv- 
ileges and  opportunities. 

But  what  about  the  drea^ul  passages  of  the 

Xew  Testament,  it  will  be  asked,  whidi  so  vio- 
lently oppose  this  lenient  hopefulaess  ? 

fn  seeking  to  satisfy  this  quer>-  we  must  put 
ourselves  back  through  centuries,  and  <»4e  bv  side 


146  SOME  FEATUBE8  OF  THE  FAITH. 

with  the  apostles  and  writers  of  the  New  Testa- 
ment. 

Sin,  to  their  eyes,  lias  its  range  as  it  has  in  our 
own  experience,  from  indiscretion  to  deadliest 
crime.  But  the  lapses  of  Christians  of  to-day 
do  not  suggest  very  readily  the  great  lapse,  which, 
from  the  nature  of  the  case,  was  ever  present  to 
the  minds  of  the  first  disciples,  namely,  a  formal 
abjuration  of  the  religion  of  Christ,  and  a  return 
to  that  of  heathenism  and  its  idols,  or  to  J udaism. 

The  strongest  passages  of  all  those  that  can  bo 
arrayed  against  the  hope  of  forgiveness  for  bap- 
tized Christians  who  dishonor  their  Christian 
vows,  are  to  be  found  in  the  Epistle  to  the  lie- 
brews  : 

"For  it  is  impossible  for  those  who  were  once 
cnU(jMcned  and  have  tasted  of  the  heavenly  yifls 
and  were  made  partakers  of  the  Holy  Ghost,  an  i 
have  tasted  the  good  word  of  God,  and  the  powers 
of  the  world  to  come,  if  they  shall  fall  away,  to  re- 
new them  again  unto  repentance ;  seeing  they  cru- 
cify to  themselves  the  Son  of  God  afresh,  and  ]mt 
llini  to  an  open  shame.  For  the  earth  which 
drinketh  in  the  rain  that  cometh  oft  upon  it,  and 
bringeth  forth  herbs  meet  for  them  by  whom  it  is 
dressed,  receiveth  blessing  from  God;  but  that 
which  beareth  thorns  and  briars  is  rejected,  and  is 


BOMB  FEATUSE8  OF  THE  FAITH.  147 

nigh  unto  cursing;  whose  end  is  to  be  burned" 
(Heb.  vi.  4-8). 

And  further  on  in  the  same  Epistle : 
"Lot  us  hold  fast  the  profession  of  our  Faith 
without  wavering  (for  lie  is  faithful  that  prom- 
^^^)  ....  not  forsaking  the  assembling 
of  ourselves  together  as  the  niann(>r  of  some  is : 
but  exhorting  one  another :  and  so  niueh  the  more 
as  ye  see  the  day  approaching.  For  if  we  sin 
wilfully  after  that  we  have  received  the  knowledge 
of  the  truth,  there  remaineth  no  more  sacrifice  for 
sins;  but  a  certain  fearful  looking  for  of  judg- 
ment, and  fiery  indignation,  which  shall  devour 
the  adversaries. 

"He  that  despised  Moses'  law  died  without 
mercy  under  two  or  three  witnesses :  Of  how  much 
sorer  punishment  suppose  ye  shall  he  be  thought 
worthy,  who  hath  trodden  under  foot  the  Son  of 
God,  and  hath  counted  the  blood  of  the  covenant, 
wherewith  he  was  sanctified,  an  unholy  thing,  and 
hath  done  despite  unto  the  spirit  of  grace  f  .  .  . 
But  call  to  remembrance  the  former  days  in  which 
after  ye  were  ilium! nnted  (baptized)  ye  endured 
a  great  fight  of  afflictions  ....  Now  the 
just  shall  live  by  faith,  hut  if  any  man  draw  back, 
my  soul  shall  have  no  pleasure  in  him.    But  we 


148  SOME  FEATURES  OF  THE  FAITH. 

are  not  of  th'^m  who  draw  hack  unto  perdition,  but 
of  them  who  believe  unto  the  saving  of  the  soul." 

Both  of  these  strong  passages  refer  to  the 
crowning  sin  of  Apostasy,  and  the  ceremonial  re- 
nunciation of  Christianity  for  Judaism;  and 
should  not  be  used  by  careless  handlers  of  the  word 
of  God  as  if  these  utterances  of  the  apostle  could 
be  conveniently  coupled  on  to  any  and  every  ordi- 
nary sin  that  daily  dogs  our  footsteps. 

"The  words  in  the  Epistle  to  the  Hebrews," 
says  Bishop  Burnet,  ''do  plainly  import  those  who, 
being  not  only  baptized,  but  having  also  received 
a  share  of  the  extraordinary  effusion  of  the  Holy 
Qhost,  had  totally  renounced  the  Christian  relig- 
ion, and  apostatized  from  the  faith,  which  was  a 
crucifying  of  Christ  anew. 

"Such  apostates  to  Judaism  were  thereby  in- 
volved in  the  crime  and  guilt  of  the  crucifying  of 
Christ,  and  the  putting  Him  to  open  shame. 

"Now  persons  so  apostatizing,  could  not  bo  re- 
newed again  by  repentance,  it  not  being  possible 
to  do  anything  towards  their  conviction  that  had 
not  already  been  done:  and  they  hardening  them- 
selves against  all  that  was  offered  for  their  convic- 
tion, wore  arrived  at  such  a  degree  of  wickedness 
that  it  was  inip(»ssil»lo  to  work  upon  them.  There 


SOMK  KEATLKKt*  OF  TIIK  FAITH.  149 

was  nothing  left  to  be  tried,  that  had  not  been  al- 
ready tried  and  proved  to  be  ineflFeetual." 

§  SO. 

The  fifth  chapter  of  St.  .John's  first  Epistle, 
which  speaks  of  a  "sin  not  unto  death"  which  may 
obtain  foi^giveness,  and  of  "a  sin  unto  death"  for 
which  we  are  not  advised  to  pray,  culminates  with 
clearness  and  force  in  the  last  verse :  "Little  chil- 
dren, keep  yourselves  from  idols,"  and  speaks 
throughout  as  unmistakably  of  apostasy  to  heath- 
enism, as  the  forbidding  passages  in  the  Epistle  to 
the  Hebrews  do  of  apostasy  from  the  faith  of 
Christ  to  Judaism. 

Now  it  will  be  seen  at  once  that  these  {)ortions 
of  Holy  Scripture  are  not  easily  applicable  to  tin 
lives  of  baptized  men  and  women  of  to-day.  In 
fact,  dealing  as  they  do  with  apostasy  alone,  they 
are  not  even  to  be  applied  to  all  times  and  kinds  of 
apostasy  itself. 

It  was  the  severe  error  of  the  Novatians  to 
make  no  difference  in  extent  of  guilt  between  those 
who  (loniod  the  faitli  by  lapsing  into  idolatry  in 
the  third  century  under  the  terrible  persecutions 
of  the  Emperor  Decius ;  and  those  in  the  first  cen- 
tury who,  having  received  the  wondrous  outpour- 
ing of  the  Holy  Ghost,  and  the  extraordinary  gifts 
and  powers  that  accompanied  it,  deliberately 


150  SOME  FEATURES  OF  THE  FAITH. 

turned  their  backs  upon  all  this  light,  and  without 
equal  stress  of  circumstances,  reembraoed  their 
native  darkness. 

Thus  the  schismatic  Xovatian  and  his  numer- 
ous followers  in  the  third  century  (for  he  may 
justly  be  called  the  first  anti-pope),  though  they 
erred  in  severity  while  acting  from  the  legitimate 
motive  that  the  Church  ought  to  use  great  caution 
about  readmitting  lapsed  idolators  back  into  her 
fold,  are  not  to  be  charged  with  the  modem  error 
of  applying  these  passages  of  Scripture  to  any 
other  sin  amongst  Christians  than  that  which  was 
in  the  minds  of  the  inspired  writers — the  capital 
sin  of  Apostasy. 

§  81. 

Of  the  "sin  unto  death"  of  which  St.  John 
speaks,  we  have  now  the  data  for  framing  a  defini- 
tion: it  is  this  formal  spurning  of  the  Christian 
Creed,  after  endowment  with  the  miraculous  gifts 
of  the  Tloly  Spirit  (the  sin  of  apostasy  mentioned 
in  Heb.  vi.)  ;  and  the  "sin  not  unto  death"  for 
which  the  ajjostle  bids  us  pray,  would  seem  plainly 
to  be  all  the  other  sin  that  flesh  is  heir  to,  since 
only  this  one  phase  or  kind  above  mentioned  is 
excepted. 

The  words  of  St.  John  in  the  third  chapter  of 
his  first  epistle — "He  that  committeth  sin  is  of 


SOME  FKATVKKS  OF  THE  FAITH.  151 

the  devil,  and  whosoever  is  born  of  God  doth  not 
commit  sin  and  cannot  sin  because  he  is  born  of 
God" — must  be  understood  in  the  larger  and  wider 
sense  of  our  not  permitting  ourselves  in  the  delib- 
erate practice  of  known  sins. 

§82. 

The  great  guilt,  however,  of  Christians  sin- 
ning against  grace,  in  the  beaten  paths  of  ordinary 
vice,  is  not  in  anywise  minimized  or  left  to  an 
obscure  position  in  the  Scriptures. 

St.  Paul  declares  that  ''if  any  man  defile  the 
temple  of  God,  him  shall  God  destroy,  for  the 
temple  of  GJod  is  holy,  which  temple  ye  are" ;  and 
demands  further  of  the  same  Christians:  "Know 
yo  not  that  the  unrighteous  shall  not  inherit  the 
Kingdom  of  God  ?" 

"Be  not  deceived:  neither  fornicators,  nor 
idolators,  nor  adulterers,  nor  effeminate,  nor  abus- 
ers of  themselves  with  mankind,  nor  thieves,  nor 
covetous,  nor  drunkards,  nor  revilers,  nor  extor- 
tioners, shall  inherit  the  Kingdom  of  God.  And 
such  were  some  of  you ;  but  ye  are  washed,  but  ye 
are  sanctified,  but  ye  are  justified  in  the  name  of 
the  Lord  Jesus,  and  by  the  Spirit  of  our  God." 

He  ends  this  uncompromising  declaration  with 
the  exclamation :  "What,  ?  know  ye  not  that  your 
body  is  the  temple  of  the  Holy  Ghost  which  is  in 


152 


SOME  PKATVBIS  OF  TH«  VAITH. 


you,  which  ye  have  of  God,  and  ye  an  not  your 
ownf* 

§83. 

Of  the  sill  of  ''blasphemy  against  the  Holy 
Ghost,'*  which  our  Lord  solenuily  declares  to  be 
beyond  the  pale  of  Divine  pardon  either  in  this 
world  or  in  the  world  to  come,  we  may  observe 
that  it  is  a  state  of  mind  rather  than  a  single  act 
of  gin;  a  state  of  such  awfulnesa  tiiat  our  Lord 
docs  not  actually  charge  it  against  even  those  cavil- 
ling Pharisees  (Matt.  xii.  22-32)  who  impiously 
and  in  defiance  of  all  true  evidence,  attributed  the 
work  of  God  the  Holy  Ghost  to  Beelzebub,  the 
prince  of  the  devils. 

The  temptation  to  this  sin  was  peculiar  to  tlie 
time  of  our  Lord  and  His  apostles,  when  all  that 
the  wisdom,  power,  and  love  of  God  coujd  do  was 
done,  as  it  never  was  before  or  since,  to  -eclaim  tne 
perverted  minds  of  men  to  truth. 

To  deliberately  and  determinedly  stifle  convic- 
tion in  the  presence  of  all  this,  exhausting  the  re- 
sources of  Heaven  only  to  contemn  them,  and  in 
spite  of  the  human  understanding  itself  to  remain 
an  entniy  to  truth  and  light— this  state  of  mind, 
totally  inconceivable  to  our  minds  in  the  case  of 
?ane  people,  is  the  unpardonable  sin  of  blasphemy 
against  the  Holy  Ghost.    "All  things  of  extreme 


SOMK  nUTITBXS  OF  THE  FAITH. 


153 


severity  in  a  doctrine  that  is  so  full  of  grace  and 
racrcy  as  the  gospel  is,  ought  to  bo  restrained  u 
much  as  may  be.  From  thence  we  infer  that  those 
dreadful  words  of  our  Saviour  ought  to  be  re- 
stnined  to  the  subject  to  which  they  are  applied, 
and  ought  not  to  be  carried  further.  Since  mir- 
ades  have  ceased,  no  man  is  any  more  capable  of 
this  sin*'  (Bishop  Buraet). 

We  may  therefore  conclude,  says  Bishop  Har- 
old Browne,  that  "severe  as  some  passages  of  Scrip- 
ture are  against  those  who  sin  wilfully  against 
light  and  grace,  and  strict  as  the  discipline  of  the 
oarly  Church  was  against  all  such  offenders,  there 
is  yet  nothing  to  prove  that  heinous  sin,  committed 
after  Baptism,  cannot  I.o  pardoned  on  repentance. 
The  strongest  and  severest  texts  in  Scripture  seem 
to  apply  not  to  persons  who  have  sinned,  and  seek 
repentance;  but  to  Apostates  from  the  faith,  who 
are  stout  in  their  apostasy  and  hardened  in  sin." 


I  84. 

WTI  iiN  wt  i.iok  Out.  th«^  wpom  rht  C^iirtiAii 
W'>r]d,  ui  -ie'  tlia  amoiyit  the  regen- 
erate, the  luajorir  \  ,  rhaps,  an  m  tbe  wrong  side 
of  the  line  which  w.  have  draw.  V  u.^n  amiable 
godlessi  ^  and  essential  Christ?  n'  v,  we  are  not 
to  conchiJe  thai  he  work  of  the  Saviour  is  a 
failure. 

^h  n  <  t  first  parents  in  Paradise  was, 
as  V  '  h  '  a  calamity  which  lay  beyond  the 
powf '  "  iu  right ;  but  with  the  baptized  world 
whoia  B         again  led  captive,  it  is  not  so. 

Tbm       ^8t8  to  a  large  extoit  a&er  Bap- 
t       ia        h  to  sober  men  to  the  great  struggle 
^  «e  them,  but  it  must  not  didiearten.  This 
sin  \^ich  mars  the  life  of  Christians,  and 
^  throws  tiM  faint  hearted  into  despair,  what 


iE  FtUTCKES  01-  TIJK  FAITH.  li>."i 

10  it  after  II  but  tlie  temponury,  tnument  mprem- 
acy  of  the  old  natin  over  the  ne-  victory 
for  the  1  menf  of  rhe  flesh  over  th«  ^t.u  the 
death  stn.  i,'glp,  1 1  a  v  even  be,  of  the  Admrn  ^^An- 
ciple  w      n  nan  ? 

V         nv  case,  all  ia  not  lost  for  Christianitv. 
This  s\  is  what  every  soldier  of  dirist  is 

instructed  xpect  throughout  the  whole  course 
of  that  life       ch  opens  to  him  at  his  Baptism. 

BetwvRH  tiie  hosts  of  Iwptized  men  and  women, 
therefore,  who,  consciously  or  unconsciously,  do 
not  wage  the  battle  they  sol^nnly  vowed  to  wage 
against  the  misleading  principle  of  the  old  man 
within  them,  between  this  large  section  of  the 
world  and  the  world's  Saviour,  there  ia  a  path  pru 
vided  for  returning  feet;  a  bridge  which  Divii 
mercy  ever  guards  and  leaves  open  for  the  r 
culpable  of  deserters. 

This  bridge  is  repentance. 

The  apostles  ever  point  to  it.    The  Sa\ 
Himself  locates  it  in  a  manner  deserving  tin- 
tention  and  gratitude  of  every  man  and  woman 
who  would  be  called  a  rational,  thinking  being. 

§85. 

In  considering  its  nature,  we  meet  with  a  mis- 
conception which  claims  a  place,  and  is  welcomed 
withm  the  minds  of  a  very  large  portion  of  mod- 


156 


SOME  FEATUBES  OF  THE  FAITH. 


em  Christians,  viz.,  the  making  the  return  of  an 
erring  Christian  to  spring  only  from  his  thrilling 
and  overpowering  love  for  his  Ifeavpniy  F«thpr ; 
and  his  experiencing  an  intense,  insupportable 
agony  at  separation  from  Him. 

If  this  teaching  were  true,  it  would  place  the 
great  bulk  of  nominal  Christians  in  a  position 
which  it  is  dreadful  to  contemplate ;  for  as  a  great, 
perhaps  the  greater  portion  of  them,  never  attain 
all  at  once,  and  before  their  return,  to  any  condi- 
tion of  heart  or  mind  which  can  honestly  be  said 
to  resemble  this,  they  are  not  unnaturally  led  to 
believe  that  no  return  is  possible  for  them;  at 
least  for  the  present.   This,  of  course,  is  said  with- 
out ignoring  the  influence  of  the  alluring  myth, 
which  makes  its  abode  in  the  secret  chambers  of 
every  human  heart  (unless  challenged  by  an  in- 
structed faith) — the  fond  hope,  that  doubtless,  no 
matter  what  the  requirement  is,  or  can  be,  which 
is  to  fit  us  for  union  with  our  Creator,  a  day  will 
somehow  come  when  a  dimly  conceived  but  fully 
credited  good  fortune  will  put  us  in  possession  of 
the  needful  qualification  for  eternal  bliss.  But 
for  the  present  (and  that  is  all  we  have  to  hope 
from,  as  it  is  also  the  only  battle-ground  on  which 
our  great  enemy  seeks  his  victories),  there  is  a 
stolid  conviction  of  the  impossibility  of  return. 


SOME  FXATITBES  OF  THE  FAITH. 


157 


Now  all  this,  though  claiming  to  be,  and  by 
many  accepted  as  Christian  truth,  is  plainly 
antagonistic  to  the  teaching  of  Christ. 

No  man  who  preaches  or  sanctions  such  doc- 
trine, has  any  true  warrant  from  Jesus  Christ  for 
his  zeal. 

§86. 

Let  us,  for  one  moment,  be  close  students  of 
the  manner  in  which  our  Lord  and  Saviour  has 
done  His  gracious  work,  and  dealt  with  the  ditH- 
culty  before  us.    He  has  not,  we  may  be  sure, 
proclaimed  a  bridge  over  this  gulf  without  having 
actually  secured  a  sure  and  certain  retreat  from 
all  phases  of  unfaithfulness  and  desertion;  and 
what  He  proclaims  as  a  reality,  we  cannot,  with- 
out the  greatest  impiety,  reduce,  or  permit  to  be 
reduced,  to  a  myth,  such  as  is  done  very  effectually 
by  all  who  make  the  Saviour  to  demand  mntuvity 
in  spirituality,  where  He  only  invites  a  beginning; 
to  demand,  in  short,  a  man's  work  froui  a  child. 

It  cannot  be  too  earnestly  maintained,  that  tlie 
Saviour  bas  made  it  wholly  i)racticable  for  Clirist- 
ian  people  who  fall  into  sin,  possible  even  for  thos,, 
who  unhappily  have  long  continued  its  chained 
bondsmen,  to  return  to  His  most  holy  ways,  and  to 
the  peace-giving  course  of  right:  if  only  an  offi- 
cious and  spurious  dogmatism  would  allow  His 


158 


SOME  FEATUBSg  OF  TBE  FAITH. 


gracious  dealing  with  our  sin-smitten  race  to  have 
its  sway. 

§87. 

In  that  priceless  illustration,  enshrined  within 
the  heart  of  the  gospel — the  parable  of  The  Prod- 
igal Son — ^humanity  possesiieB  the  full  and  clear 
revelation  of  God's  attitude  toward  all  returning 
sinners,  and  periiaps  especially  toward  repentant 
Christians — ^the  returning  sons  of  the  household. 

Here  we  find  the  lower,  cosmical  principle 
working  on  the  impetuous  iuipulses  of  youth,  and 
leading  the  professed  soldier  of  Christ  captive, 
through  the  snare  of  skilfully  chosen,  inviting 
promises.  Trusting  to  these  promises  of  better- 
ment, ihe  son  leaves  his  father's  house — the  telling 
picture  of  youth  leaving  th  vr«iys  of  God.  Time 
ripens  for  the  promises  to  I'var  fruit,  but  the  har- 
vest is  disappointing;  it  is  u  f limine. 

And  now  frowning  circumstances  b^n  their 
sobering  process,  as  all  frowning  circumstances  in 
life  are  apt  to  do,  for  however  short  a  period. 

Observe,  however,  where  the  process  takes 
place.  It  is  the  popular  theology  that  to  be  of 
any  the  slightest  value,  this  change  or  sobering 
must  begin  with  the  heart ;  that  anything  else  is 
hypocrisy,  and  altogether  unworthy  of  a  moment's 
consideration. 


SOKE  FEATUKte  OF  THS  FAIT«.  1W$ 

And  yet  not  one  word  in  all  this  parabif'  is 
said  about  the  heart ;  not  one  word,  that  is,  akmt 
the  Bcm's  heart,  though  much  about  the  father's. 

Wfa^  1»  ewdd  no  loniger  feed  m  proiuioe», 
and  ke«»4oot&ed  huuger  gnawed,  the  ami  mmoke 
to  his  true  einrwMiinnws  pgmpms,  or,  in  tke 
pregnant  woitte  «f  the  Swiof,  fin  etam  t» 
himself/' 

Now  if  we  stumbled  on  tliie  story  in  another 
kind  of  literature,  and  at  a  ^aat  when  we  had  no 
preconceived  doctrine  to  make  good,  what  could 
we  say  of  the  magnanimity  of  ^s  young  man's 
awakening  ?  That  he  was  overwhekned  with  true 
filial  love  for  his  father  ?  That  irrespective  of  his 
present  circumstanees  and  necessities,  a  sudden 
longing  for  the  sweet  scenes  of  his  childhood,  for 
the  endearments  of  home,  and  for  the  sound  of 
his  beloved  father's  voice,  overcame  and  unmanned 
him  to  such  an  extent  that  he  could  no  longer  con- 
tinue to  remain  at  this  heartless  distance  from 
such  cherished  objects  of  his  affections  ? 

Should  we  say  all  this  of  him  ?  Or  should  we 
not  rather  say,  simply,  that  he  was  destitute,  and 
remembered  that  his  la^r  had  plenty  f 

There  can  be  no  question  as  to  wiuLi  we  should 
say:  for  we  dionld  expnss  what  w»  are  al<»e 


160  SOMB  PXATUBS8  OF  THX  FAITH. 

justified  in  thinking,  namely,  that  the  words,  "he 
came  to  himself/'  mean,  he  came  face  to  face  with 
his  own  true  interests ;  nothing  more  or  less. 

The  loftiest  disposition  which  this  yoimg  man 
manifested  hj  his  awakening  act,  we  should  be 
compelled  to  acknowledge  was  nothing  more  than 
mere  sobriety,  evinced  by  a  common-sense  sum- 
ming up  of  the  situation,  with  the  plain,  well- 
grounded  conviction  carrying  everything  before  it, 
that  he  was  the  loser. 

To  adorn  this  young  man  with  all  the  quali- 
ties of  godly  sonship,  revived  in  their  sweetest 
odor,  is  to  copy  the  example  of  those  who  in  our 
day,  though  not  yet  in  our  country,  make  heroes  of 
criminals,  and  decorate  their  prison  cells  with 
lavish  offerings  of  flowers,  making  honest  folk 
almost  find  it  in  their  hearts  to  arraign  the  un- 
biased decisions  of  justice  as  monstrous  inhuman- 
ity to  man. 

Those,  likewise,  who  from  some  potent  cause 
within  themselves,  of  which  perhaps  they  are  un- 
conscious, but  of  which  we  have  glanced  at  the  his- 
tory, seek  to  rehabilitate  the  Prodigal,  and  erect 
him  into  a  fountain  of  filial  tears,  must  remember 
that  they  do  so  at  the  cost  of  lessening  the  gracious 
fatherliness  of  the  Father,  which  is,  beyond  all 
mistaking,  the  great  point  of  the  Saviour's  parable. 


SOMB  PEATI7BS8  OF  THE  FAITH. 


The  famine— affliction,  disapjwintuu-nt,  the 
failure  of  hopes,  the  lessening  of  life's  chances 
with  the  lessening  of  the  sands  of  life,  and  the  con- 
sciousness of  unprofitableness  overshadowing  and 
pervading  all— this  is  calculated  to  transform  the 
dreaming,  drifting  prod^al  of  all  ages,  not  indeed 
into  an  angel  of  tenderest  sensibilities,  but  into  the 
sober,  thinking  man;  and  our  point  is,  that  this 
at  least  is  within  the  reach  of  all  Christian  people, 
who  have  "erred  and  gone  astray"  from  the  way 
which  they  solemnly  dedicated  themselves  at  their 
Baptism. 

AtuI  so  the  Saviour's  bridge  for  such  sinners, 
is  a  real  bridge ;  one  which  they  can  actually  cross; 
not  a  thing  swung  at  an  imijossible  elevation,  nor 
one  blocked  by  impassible  barriers. 

The  Lord  Jesus  Christ  therefore,  in  thus  mak- 
ing this  Prodigal  Son,  with  qualities  of  heart  and 
head  so  low  on  the  scale  of  j.ossibility,  an  instance 
of  acceptable  repentance,  proclaims,  and  author- 
izes His  duly  commissioned  ministry  to  proclaim, 
that  if  the  heart  be  wanting  i.i  promptings  to  re- 
turn to  our  heavenly  Father's  house  and  to  ,.ur 
home,  the  head  may,  by  the  expenditure  of  as  mudi 
energy  as  it  requires  to  redton  up  our  bankruptcy, 
lawfully  and  fitly  use  the  words  originally  voic^ 
by  a  not  very  saintly  soul:    "I  will  arise  and  -o 


162  SOME  FEATVBE8  OF  THE  VAITH. 

to  my  father,  and  will  say  uuto  him,  Father,  I 
have  sinned  against  heaven  and  before  thee,  and 
am  no  more  worthy  to  be  called  thy  son ;  make  mc 
as  one  of  thy  hired  servants;"  and  we  have  the 
fullest  warranty  for  promising  to  every  member 
of  that  vast  class  of  which  the  Prodigal  of  the 
Gospel  parable  is  the  Divinely  chosen  type,  the 
same  gracious  reception  and  pardon  which  the 
Prodigal  himself  experienced. 

§89. 

Repentance  may  thus  be  said,  in  the  case  of 
baptized  persons,  to  be  the  dawn  of  sober  sense 
upon  a  career  sadly  marred  and  distorted  by  the 

absence  of  it. 

This  dawn  is  acceptable  to  our  Redeemer,  be- 
cause it  gives  the  first  restored  glimpse  of  Him 
through  the  rising  mists  of  worldliness  and  sin, 
so  far  as  we  can  well  trace  it. 

It  is  acceptable  because  it  is  the  true  beginning 
of  the  full,  clear  day. 

This  order  of  repentance,  thus  understood, 
coming  first,  and  afterwards  its  maturer  develop- 
ments, is  faithfully  set  forth  in  the  verse : 

"O  give  repentance  true  and  deep 
To  an  Thy  lost  and  wand'ring  sheep, 
And  kindle  In  their  hearts  the  flre 
Of  taoir  tare  and  pttt*  dtaln." 


SOME  FEATUKKS  OF  THE  FAlTil. 


163 


But  the  difference  between  the  dawn  and  the 
tiay  is  not  more  real  and  indisputable,  than  that 
iK  tween  the  incipient  acceptable  repentance  of  the 
Prodigal,  and  repentance  in  the  fullest  and  most 
mature  state. 

§90. 

Now,  in  commonly  discoursing  of  Repentance, 
it  is  most  natural  that  the  fuller  idea  should  to  a 
large  extent  monopolize  the  whole  use  of  the  term, 
just  as  when  the  name  Xapoleon  is  mentioned  or 
referred  to  without  further  specification,  we  usu- 
ally think  of  the  greatest  personage  who  w.ts 
known  by  that  name  in  history,  that  is,  of  its 
founder,  though  there  are  at  least  two  other  world- 
known  princes  who  bear  the  very  same  designation. 

But  this  tendency  of  the  busy  world  to  use  a 
word  in  its  strongest  sense,  must  not  be  permitted 
to  betray  us  into  the  error  of  beHeving  this  sense 
to  be  exhaustive,  and  the  only  legitimate  meaning. 

The  voice  of  the  multit  ude  may  go  for  much  in 
imposing  its  summary  decisions,  it  may  oblige  us 
for  the  most  part  to  think  of  the  full  light  of  noon- 
«lay  when  it  speaks  of  daylight;  but  the  weary 
watchers  of  the  night  (the  picket  on  a  kopje  in 
South  Africa,  for  instance),  must  not  be  brow- 
beaten into  a  confession  of  misapprehension,  for 
believing  that  that  which  they  see  appearing  in 


164 


80MX  FSATUBU  09  THX  VAITH. 


grey  streaks  on  the  horizon  is  the  actual  approach 
of  day. 

For  whatever  we  call  it,  the  important  fact  re 
mains  that  die  end  of  the  night  has  come.  Au- 
other  period  of  time  has  emerged.  And  certain 
it  18,  that  no  noontide  has  ever  come,  or  can  oome 
to  us,  without  such  a  preceding  and  Iwralding 
dawn. 

We  must  therefore  take  due  cognizance  of  this 
essential  consideration. 

If  we  happen  to  be  asleep  when  the  light  b^ns 

its  diurnal  course,  if  we  are  familiar  with  no 
earlier  clearness  than  that  of  a  sun  high  in  the 
heavens,  we  must  not  advance  our  experiencf 
wbi'  V  only  means  lack  of  observation  and  of  lu- 
curaf.,  and  accessible  knowledge,  as  conclusive  evi- 
dence that  no  such  earlier  light  has  any  real  ex- 
istence. 

When  we  talk  of  life  with  all  its  joys  and  sor- 
rows, we  oftenest  mean  that  sphere  of  action  in 
which  grown  persons  only  participate :  but  yet  no 
dispute  can  arise  as  to  whether  children  and  in- 
fants have  a  just  claim  to  a  part  in  illustrating  the 
meaning  of  that  word. 

This  is  but  another  instance  of  how  a  portion 
of  the  meaning  of  a  word  often  arrogates  to  itself 
the  entire  term.    And  further,  as  we  must  not 


SOME  FKATUBES  OK  l  llK  FAITH,  106 

deny  to  this  repentance  of  the  Protligal,  which  so 
forcibly  su^rg(..st8  the  dawn,  the  full  registration  of 

«ctiiality  and  preciousness ;  so  also  we  must  not 
..(•(•iipy  ourselves  with  dogniatizitifr  .,s  to  which  of 
the  two  states— the  lesser  <.r  the  fuller  repentance 
—is  the  more  deserving  and  appreciable  in  God's 
sight. 

In  that  sheet-anchor  for  the  shifting  meaning 
of  the  word  Repentance—the  para  Die  of  the  Prod- 
igal Son— our  Blessed  Lord  has  plainly  given  us 
to  know  that  He  accepts  the  naked  second  thought, 
all  unattired  and  unadorned  as  it  may  be.  The 
garments  do  not  make  this  child;  and  here,  too, 
"the  body  is  more  than  raiment." 

The  goodness  of  Qod  lea^  to  repentance 
(Rom.  ii.  4),  and  whether  this  be  the  new-bom 
lml)e  of  repentance,  or  that  babe  grown  to  fulness 
of  stature,  the  thing  is  the  same,  though  we  refer 
to  it  at  different  periods  of  its  development. 

§91. 

Repentance  then  means  a  change  of  mind  on 
reflection ;  taking  another  and  riper  view  of  things 
of  the  supremest  moment  to  us  as  rational  beings. 

The  pitiless  inadequacy  of  that  teaching  which 
barricades  the  road  left  open  by  Christ  Himself, 
for  the  return  of  those  who  are  becoming,  through 


166  SOME  FEATURKS  OF  THE  FAITH. 

the  instnunentalitj  of  circumstances — those  un- 
hotued  preadiers  of  God — disenchanted  with  all 
godless  schemes  of  happiness,  is  seen  plainly  in 
the  light  of  the  fact  that  here  alone,  in  this  diort, 
fleeting,  uncertain  life,  is  offered  to  us  the  one  and 
only  sphere  wherein  the  mercy  of  the  Saviour  is 
designed  to  operate  for  our  salvation,  and  wrap  us 
to  Himself.  Once  the  curtain  falls  on  this  life's 
brief  day  and  hides  us  f 'om  our  kindred,  the  pa- 
tient, crucified  Saviour  ceases  forever  to  be  such, 
and  is  transformed  into  the  Judge  Eternal,  before 
whom  we  must  stand  on  our  own  slender  merits, 
if  we  have  neglected,  from  any  cause  or  misappre- 
henaion,  to  draw  npon  His.  ''We  must  all  stand 
before  the  judgment  seat  of  Christ" 

Qod,  having  c(Hnmitted  His  Chnreh  into  the 
hands  of  men  and  not  of  angels,  well  knowing  what 
was  in  man,  this  conscioamees  on  the  part  of  the 
Christian  priesthood,  of  responsibilitj,  wedded  to 
an  inherent  liability  to  err,  ought  to  make  us  alive 
in  every  fibre  of  our  being,  to  the  awfulness  of  ex- 
cluding the  sunshine  and  the  rain  from  this  deli- 
cate flower  which  may  at  any  time  spring  forth 
from  the  ruins  and  the  rubbish  of  a  mis-spent  lifo. 
"\Mioso  shall  offend  one  of  these  little  ones  which 
believe  in  Me,  it  were  better  for  him,  that  a  mill- 
stone were  hanged  about  his  neck,  and  that  he  were 


SOME  FEATURES  OF  THE  FAITH.  167 

drowned  in  the  depth  of  the  gea"  (8t  Matt 
xvuu  6). 

§92. 

If  those  who  are  sure  of  their  right  (because 
of  miuion  rather  than  of  merit)  with  its  Mooai- 
panying  assured  grace  (St.  Matt.  xxWii.  19,  20), 

to  undertake  tlie  cure  of  souls,  are  guilty  of  thus 
iucrcas^iiig  tlie  difficulties  of  the  Prodigal's  return, 
they  iiiust  answer  the  momentous  charge  at  the 
proper  time. 

But  the  mind  reels  at  the  temerity  of  those  who 
break  through  all  order,  human  and  Divine,  to 
clothe  themselves  with  power  only  to  shorten  the 
arm  of  God  stretched  out  to  rescue  a  lost  race— 
these  Faahs  (II.  Sam.  vi.),  whose  good  intentions 
have  secured  them  the  world's  seal  of  Ordination, 
in  default  of  Christ's  and  His  apostles'. 

§93. 

We  have  now  to  see  how  this  concept  of  the 
attitude  which  God  requires  in  all  those  who  ap- 
proach  Him,  agrees  with  that  which  the  Church 

outlines  in  her  confessions. 

(1)  In  the  general  Confession,  in  the  offices 
for  Morning  and  Evening  Prayer,  the  first  words 
that  brcijk  on  the  ear  show  that  the  compilers  of 
our  Book  .1  Common  Prayer  had  in  their  minds 
the  model  of  repentance  supplied  them  and  us  bv 


168 


HOME  rKAnmn  or  tm«  faith. 


our  BIciwed  Lord  Hinuelf,  in  the  parable  of  the 

Proflipal  Son. 

The  familiar  words,  "Wo  have  orrod  aud 
stra.ved  from  Thv  ways  like  lost  shfop,  \vc  havr 
followed  too  much  the  devices  and  deBires  of  our 
own  hearta";  the  tutored  addressing  of  God  a; 
"Father,**  and  "moat  ineroifnl,"  are  all  suggestive 
of  the  fMttem  upon  whaeh  they  were  framed,  and 
that  ia  the  Saviour'g  ide*  of  the  approach  of  ainful 
man  to  God*8  footatool. 

This  is  appointed  as  the  fit  language  of  all 
sorts  and  conditions  of  men,  who  come  where  two 
or  three  are  gathered  together  in  His  name.  It  is 
the  Iwrder-lauguapo  of  the  Church,  open  to  the 
honest  use  of  ail  who  are  tired  of  the  huaks  of  the 
world. 

It  is  characterized  by  the  absence  (  *'  all  fervor, 
and  is  intended  to  bt^  the  plain,  matter-of-fact, 
sober  acknowledpinent  of  mistake,  and  c.-iisoquent 
loss.  It  is  the  very  mirror  of  our  Lord's  r(  voale  l 
mind  on  this  point,  utterly  untouched  by  learned 
theological  opinion,  aa  it  ia  unaullied  by  any  other 
species  of  human  exaggeration. 

It  may  seem  to  some,  that  in  this  presentation 
of  the  sinner's  return  to  God,  too  little  account 
has  bean  taken  of  the  feelings,  and  the  part  they 
play  in  oonvmimi. 


SOME  FKATURKS  OF  TUK  FAITH.  169 


Hilt  it  must  not  bo  inferred  that,  because  noth- 
ing; has  been  said  of  thorn  as  essential  so  far  as 
..nlitmry  oycs  can  sco,  to  the  "coming  to"  oneself, 
thcv  are  therefore  utterly  cast  aside  as  either 
thinierical  or  unworth  )f  notice.  So  far  from 
tliis,  they  are  indeed  both  a  great  reality,  and  a 
Kpiritual  luxury :  but  impoverished  souls  must  not 
expeet  to  makv  sucli  buiquf  ting  their  daily  diet. 

This  is  not  ill  the  ordinary  food  of  soldiers 
of  Christ  on  ufitive  service:  and  the  palate  must 
not  be  permitted  to  expect  it  as  such.  It  is  rather 
the  counterpart  '»f  the  royal  box  of  chocolate  sent 
to  oiir  soldiers  in  Africa,  not  their  daily  ration; 
aiid  no  soldier  was  known  to  misunderstand  the 
(^neon's  gift.  In  fact  there  are  those  who,  k- 
CiMiso  of  the  extraordinary  dolightfulness  which 
in  addition  to  ifs  actuality  it  possesses,  would  warn 
us  that  this  glowing  emotion,  like  tlic  iingel  of 
light,  is  smnetimes  counterfeited  by  the  Ev]  ;  ;  n  c. 
The  author  of  the  Spiritual  Combat*  has  the  fol- 
lowing : 

"Sensible  devotion  arises  sometiniPH  from  na- 
ture, sometimes  from  the  devil,  and  sometimes 
from  grace.  You  will  be  able  from  its  fruit  to 
discern  its  source;  since  if  it  does  not  produce 
amendment  of  life,  your  only  doubt  will  be 


*  Lawnnc*  SenpoU,  Chap.  lis. 


170  SOME  VXATUBXB  OF  THE  FAITH. 

whether  it  proceeds  from  the  devil  or  from  nature, 
and  especially  if  it  is  accompanied  bv  a  greater 
relish  and  sweetness  and  attachment,  and  a  cer- 
tain self-esteem.  When  therefore  you  shall  feel 
your  mind  filled  with  spiritual  sweetness,  do  not 
stop  to  dispute  about  the  source  from  whence  it 
comes :  and  do  not  lean  upon  it  nor  suffer  yourself 
to  be  taken  off  from  the  thought  of  your  own  noth- 
ingness ;  but  with  grrater  diligence  and  hatred  of 
self,  study  to  keep  your  heart  free  from  all  attach- 
ment, even  to  spiritual  things,  and  seek  God  alone, 
and  His  good  pleasure ;  for  in  this  way  the  delight 
— whether  it  spring  from  nature  or  from  the  devil 
— will  be  changed  into  an  effect  of  grace  to  you. 
.  .  .  Dryness  may  likewise  proceed  from  these 
three  causes — from  the  devil — from  ourselves — 
from  grace." 

But  of  the  place  which  our  feelings  occupy  in 
the  sphere  of  Christianity,  more  anon. 

(2)  In  the  oiBce  for  the  Holy  Communion 
there  is  a  notiomble  difference  in  the  language  of 
the  Confession,  a  difference  which  agrees  with  the 
idea  of  repentance  that  we  are  her  endeavoring  to 
set  forth. 

In  the  Confewion  in  the  Liturgy,  the  suppliant 
is  not,  as  in  the  otlier  form  of  Confession,  the 
travel-stained  wanderer  from  purlieus  of  the 


80MK  FBATUWB8  OF  THB  FAITH.  l7l 

world ;  bat  the  son  on  whom  the  robe,  and  shoes, 
and  ling  of  paternal  providence,  have  become 
familiar  objects  and  evidences  of  love.  Tbo 
heightening  and  deepening  of  feding  in  the  utter- 
ances here,  can  need  no  explanation.  That  the 
repentance  now  should  be  earnest,  and  that  the 
wrongnloing  should  generate  "hearty  sorrow,"  and 
give  rise  to  "remembrances"  "grievous  to  be 
borne,"  "intolerable,"  is  as  natural  as  that  the 
grey  dawn  should  broaden  and  deepen  into  the 
warmth  of  noonday. 


CHAPTEK  XIII. 


§94. 

HOLY  COMMUNION  (iNTBOOUCTOBt). 

CHE  danger  here  has,  for  too  long,  been  t^t  of 
digging  too  deep.  If  tiie  gold  is  on  or  near 
the  surface,  surely  it  is  nothii^  leas  than  abmrd  to 
keep  on  delving  to  the  centre  of  the  earth;  as  if 
nothing  can  bo  done  in  this  universe  which  (5od 
has  made  and  sustained  alone  through  all  the  ages, 
without  man's  achieving  it. 

Doomed  to  gain  our  bread  by  the  sweat  of  our 
brow,  the  race  seems  unable  to  view  any  prospect, 
except  through  tlie  fiune  and  dust  of  this  inevitable 
travail. 

From  the  pit  which  this  holy  theme  has  been 
to  them,  theologians  have  thrown  up  an  immense 
amount  of  matter.  But  it  has  for  the  most  part 
remained  where  they  left  it — at  the  pit's  mouth. 
Mankind  has  not  noticeably  lessened  the  huge  bulk 


BOia  WMUkTowaat  ow  thb  vmth.  173 

by  any  eager  appropriation.  Accepting  the  esti- 
mates of  the  various  miners,  the  world  of  Christ- 
ians has  been  interested  enou^  to  quarrel  orer  the 
nature  ai^  value  of  what  giant  Uker  has  Inrou^t 
to  the  surf aee,  but  ikey  htm  not  taken  it  away. 

If  this  is  so,  it  plak^  ineam  tiurt  1^  bmii  and 
wama  who  eoipese  the  CSiurch  of  God  in  ike 
world,  are  not  as  rich,  in  the  highest  ridies,  as 
they  might  be ;  and  who  shall  say  that  if  they  were, 
there  would  to-day  be  any  'Svorld"  outside  the 
Church  ?  For  all  that  is  desirable  would  then  be 
attributed  to  its  rightful  author,  and  the  residue, 
stripped  of  the  borrowed  colors  of  heaven,  and 
shining  in  its  own  sinister  light,  would  become  a 
beacon  to  the  souls  of  men,  not  an  allurement. 

§95. 

Men  of  clear  heads  and  sound  hearts,  who 
grapple  with  the  various  problems  of  litV*  and 
overcome  their  difficulties;  who  look  far  into  the 
future  and  make  effective  calculations  for  their 
protection  therein ;  and  who,  in  every  department 
and  ramification  of  that  God-given  task  of  "sub- 
duing the  earth,^  bear  themselves  with  gu(^  efeetit, 
exhibitii^;  in  their  methods  the  applicaticm  oi  tite 
profoundeat  policy — men  with  a  record  suek  as 
this,  eannot  be  ^tily  chained  with  deltl»rate 
n^ect,  here.    Men  and  wcnnea  who  inteiygsn^ 


174 


SOME  FEATUBXS  OF  THE  FAITH. 


apply  themselves  to  their  interests  in  every  other 
quarter,  do  not  offer  any  presumptive  evidence  tiiat 
in  this  matter — the  greatest  for  whidi  understand- 
ing has  been  given  to  man — of  getting  all  the 
wealth  out  of  the  Lord's  Supper  that  it  possesses 
for  them,  they  are  criminally  lax. 

Under  the  high  sanction  of  God,  and  of  right 
sense,  they  have  reverently  entrusted  this  matter 
to  the  accredited  Ministry  of  the  Church.  They 
have  handed  over  this  great  interest  of  theirs  to 
those  who,  according  to  the  mind  and  institution  of 
Christ,  are  appointed  and  expected  to  make  the 
most  of  it  for  them,  by  at  least  keeping  open  and 
unobstructed,  the  prospect  it  offers. 

What  returns  have  been  secured  them  ?  This 
is  a  fair,  a  necessary  inquiry  to  be  made  of  him- 
self by  even  the  humblest  member  of  those  who 
share  the  weighty  responsibility. 

§  96. 

It  may  be  said,  and  with  truth,  that  the  returns 
are  not  slight;  but  the  question  is,  has  tilt  most 
been  made  <>f  that  which  has  by  God  and  man 

been  committed  to  the  Church  ?  Has  the  realky, 
undiluted  and  unobserved,  been  laid  bare  to  the 
needs  of  men  '.  so  prosente-i  that  they  may  reach 
it,  hody  and  soul;  and  roacliui^;  j(.  may  feel  the 
full,  ricli  satisfaction  settle  down  upon  intellect 


<Mf  TSX  FAITH. 


175 


aai  hmet,  learning  a&  flwe  for  a  peradventure  as 
to     artwA  bmefit  feedrnd  ? 

To  this  m%amo§0mj  tiie  MMPer  is  not  forth- 
coming, or  not  what  M  o«|^  te  In. 

The  Ua^fmgd  in  ^ii4idh  ^  imki^Biimi  of  this 
great  awwawnt  is  emWdied,  seems  to  satisfy,  as 
to  deames^  aM.  ^km  re^iromonts  of  the  Divine 
wmmand  given  to  the  prophet  Habakkuk :  ''Write 
the  vision  and  make  it  plain  upon  tables  that  he 
inny  run  that  rrndrfh  it ;"  and  yot  there  is  nothing 
iijton  whieh  tlw  world  is  so  much  and  ao  pitiably 
divided  to-day,  as  it  is  iii  its  conceptions  of  this 
gr'  a'  f tindanientail  matter. 

Christendom,  not  necessarily  theologians,  be- 
ijokiiag  Ohipist,  loves  Him,  and  believing  that  He 
is  s^  K<>  dainis  to  be,  expects  its  sttvii^  at  His 
liaa<is;  smi  ia  the  rnHwrt  fenataia  ef  refreduaaoit 
vfh^k  Me  so  ocBMjpicwomty  inatitated,  mi.  m 
whidA  «M  that  He  is  to  aa  it  fatibMad  together  «mI 
oiitpmired,  it  is  pernHfthla  for  it  to  maaife^  soose 
degree  of  disappointment,  if  anything  less  than 
very  real,  appreciable  revivieatioa  m  piren. 

That  Ais  high  requisite  existg,  and  that  the 
Saviour  of  men  established  it,  ther*'  is  with  the 
great  body  of  ( 'hrisrians  and  nominal  Christians, 
equally  with  fh(>  learned,  I'o  manner  <>f  question. 

And  yet  who  is  satisfied  with  the  outcome^ 


176 


SOME  FKATUBE8  OF  THE  FAITH. 


With  the  chilling  and  av^ul  spectacle  which 
Christendom  presents  with  its  huge  sections  stand- 
ing each  aloof  from  the  rest,  and  looking  with  no 
very  marked  kindliness  on  all  who  do  not  sul)- 
scribe  to  its  shaping  of  Divine  truths  And,  in 
one  case,  to  its  theory  of  a  matter  concerning  which 
it  is  inipietv  to  have  any  tiieorv,  es})ecially  if  the 
acceptance  of  that  theory  Ih'  made  the  nn-(Miristian 
condition  of  enjoying  the  untrammelled  goodness 
of  God  i 

This  spectacle,  doubtless,  has  much  to  do  with 
the  unsatisfactory  condition  of  Christianity 
amongst  us,  as  individuals,  and  explains  to  sonic 
extent  the  gap  between  the  actual  and  the  possible 
for  each  member  of  Ae  body  of  Christ  which  is 
His  Church  (Eph.  i.  22,  23;  v.  23;  Col.  i.  24). 

§97. 

We  have  said  that  the  putting  of  a  theory  of 
the  way  in  which  Christ's  mercy  is  Wought  about 
for  us,  into  the  place  of  that  mercy  itself,  is  un- 
christian; and  this  strong  assertion  is,  we  think, 

borne  ont  by  the  ff^llowing  curt  "analogy  of  re- 
ligion to  the  constitution  and  course  of  nature," 
if  we  may  Ixirrow  Bishop  Butler's  phrase;  an 
analogy  which  Iihs  Ihhmi  violated  by  all  such  the- 
orists, wliir-h  we  siiall  stati>  in  the  form  of  ii 
question:    How  ill  would  it  agree  with  the  broad 


SOME  FKATUBE8  OF  THE  FAITH. 


177 


beneficence  of  the  Almighty,  upon  which  the 
world,  and  all  therein  have  thriven  ever  since 
creation,  if  man  were  now  to  decree,  that  no 
single  creature  in  all  the  earth  should  partake 

of  the  food  which  omnipotent  Fatherhood  has 
brought  out  of  the  earth  by  His  inscrutable  mir- 
acle of  mercy,  until  that  creature,  of  whatever 
order,  shall  have  signed  and  attested  a  human 
theory  of  how  that  food  is  brought  into  being  in 
the  ground;  that  is  to  say,  until  such  creature 
shall  have  sworn  to  belief  iu  a  human  explaualiod 
of  growth — a  thing  of  which  we  know  absolutely 
nothing?  For  science,  with  all  its  glorious  tri- 
umphs, stands  mute  and  ignorant  in  the  presence 
of  a  blade  of  gnsa. 

And  yet,  w^tthstanding  this  universal  ignor- 
ance, all  His  creatures,  from  the  highest  to  the  low- 
est, have  continued  t..  i)artake  of  what  God  has 
bountifully  provided  for  their  nourishment,  and 
attained  their  full  development  without  any  such 
unnatural,  arbitrary,  and  imfjoverishing  legisla- 
tion as  thi  •■. 

The  lin-;,  1  u{)on  tens  of  thousands  of  Christ- 
ian tables  is  daily  eat^'n  with  devout  thankful- 
ness to  God,  all  the  while  no  sinsrle  being  can  any- 
V  liere  amongst  ns  bt  found  to  explain  the  famiiiar 
miracle  it  manifests. 


178  SOME  F£ATUBX8  OF  THE  FAITH. 

We  have  noticed  iii  another  quarter  the  sad 
tendency  to  make  difficult,  if  not  impossible,  that 
yfhieh  our  Lord  Jesns  Christ  has  made  easy ;  and 
here  we  have  a  learned  philosophy  undertaking  to 
fill  out  revelation  and  give  ns  Transnhetantiation 
(a  concept  as  cumhrous  as  its  title),  where  the  Gos- 
pel only  gives  us  the  Body  and  Blood  of  Christ 
Again  we  meet  the  human  tendency — the  reaching 
out  to  forbidden  power  to  make  another  Gospel,  a 
harder  Gospel — and  all  from  zeal  for  God. 

§98. 

Is  not  this  jmt  what  we  should  have  been  led 
to  expect,  if  Chnst  our  Saviour  had  deposited  His 

full,  ad(H|uate  treasurv  of  merit.  His  remedy  for 
lost  luunatiiry.  that  is^  to  say,  "the  Bread  of  Life," 
at  tlie  foft  of  the  Sc-ribes  and  Pharisees,  the 
leaniod  heads  of  tlie  Jewish  Chnrcl; ;  and  enjoined 
thorn  to  cluhoraf-  ' V  manufacture  it  in  their  mill 
iiit  fitness  f,»r  rlu  j)eojtlc,  according  to  Scribal 
iUK;  Phari-saicai  ideas  of  Htuess  i 

But  this  is  so  far  from  being  the  course  i)ur- 
sued  by  our  Blessed  Lord,  that  it  is  the  very  oppo- 
site of  HiH  Divine  action  in  the  mi^t^. 

Our  Saviour  never  cbsige^  tiiat  His  direct 
toaehi?ig  sWuM  filter  Ihroi^  tite  sdboeii  tf  Hillel 
and  Shsmmai  to  the  souls  of  am. 

The  very  7iien,  tmi  <^Ma  si         ^^obbl  He 


SOMB  FEATUSES  OF  THE  FAITH. 


179 


fhose  as  His  standard  bearers,  show  r/,  that  wl  ul 
He  brouj'ht  to  the  salvation  of  the  race,  required 
no  tiniahini?  at  the  hands  of  scholarshij 

There  is  indeed  a  time  and  a  place  1  >r  erudi- 
tion, but  it  is  not  here. 

That  it  has  not  feared  to  tread  here,  however, 
and  that  a  deadening  of  Christianity  has  conse- 
quently ensued,  are  two  dreadful  facts  which 
o:ight  to  make  us  all  more  careful  to  distinguish 
Itetween  the  work  of  Jesus  Christ,  and  the  work 
of  men  in  the  Kingdom  of  God. 

That  which  theologians  are  able  to  explain 
utterly,  they  may  almost  be  expected  to  produce. 

Theologians  could  not  save  us  in  our  lost  con- 
dition. 

Their  eflForts  therefore,  so  far  as  what  mankind 
stood  S(  u  rribly  in  need  of  is  concerned,  come 
too  Into.  They  must  not  attempt  to  do  too  much 
for  us  now. 

Our  theology  ought  only  to  seek  to  be  the  iri 
(if  preventing  obscurations  of  the  Saviour,  liis 
words  and  His  work;  like  a  constabulary  force 
in  the  stricken  camp  of  Israel,  who  might  have 
been  effective  in  keeping  clear  of  thronging  multi- 
tudes and  of  obstructions  of  all  kinds,  the  line  of 
vision  between  tl^  brazen  serpent  and  the  eyes  of 
the  mort  distant  sufferer. 


180 


soil  K  PKATVBn  OF  THK  FAITH. 


But  what  insanitary  region  of  the  human  in- 
tellect or  imagination  could  (without  the  aid  of 
subsequent  Christian  history)  have  evolved  the  pic- 
ture of  a  fellow-sufferer,  a  human  priest,  standing 
obtrusively  in  front  of  this  immediate  mercy  to 
gasping  myriads,  the  bnusen  aerpent,  and  ruth- 
lessly exercising  what  to  him  was  his  rightful 
function,  of  not  only  explaining  fully,  and  to  the 
level  of  the  meanest  capmsity,  how  the  Divine 
miracle  was  wrought;  but  by  demanding  from 
each  perishing  Israelite,  his  sworn  tusent  to  this 
explanation  before  the  sufferer  could  hope  to  gain 
the  healing  which  God,  in  His  infinite  mercy, 
meant  him  to  have  direct  by  merely  looking  with- 
out knowing  or  at  least  understanding  ? 

IIow  iHipious,  how  awful  a  thing  can  misplaced 
learning,  backed  by  preponderating  ecclesiastit-al 
authority,  become  I  And  hoir  easilij!  Especially 
in  such  an  nge  of  ignorance  as  that  in  which  Tran- 
substantiation  i  tok  its  rise. 

The  savants  of  our  Lord's  time  were  not  taken 
into  any  partnership  or  collaboration  with  Christ. 
The  suflSciency  of  the  Saviour  for  the  task  that  lay 
before  Him,  and  in  the  presence  of  which  the 
scholar  and  the  boor  were  fused,  undistinguish- 
able,  in  the  general  mass  of  human  impotency,  is 
the  dominant  fact  of  the  Gospel. 


80MC  FEATUKKS  OF  TIIS  FAITH. 


181 


Our  Lord  who  knew  what  IIo  roiiuired,  passed 
this  class  by.  Their  special  services  were  uot 
wanted. 

The  apostles  were  chosen.  The  ctjuipmeut  of 
these  servants  was  that  they  were  nu^rely  honest 
men.  Their  task  was  to  tell  what  they  saw,  and  to 
repeat  what  they  heard. 

They  were  sturdy,  mascnline  witnesses.  They 
were  never  at  any  time  analytical  experts. 
Through  the  noble  service  they  rendered  their 
Lord,  and  mankind,  we  see  Christ  plainly. 

If  Jesus  Christ  condescended  to  explain  Ilis 
fictt!,  we  have  the  explanation.  Where  no  such 
(  xplanation  was  vouchsafed,  the  apostles  have  ven- 
tured upon  none. 

They  did  not  presume  to  demonstrate  how  the 
Savionr  did  His  great  works ;  they  merely  declared 
that  He  did  them,  and  described  the  wonders  that 
were  eqnally  patent  to  all  the  others  who  beheld 
them. 

§  99. 

From  our  stdndpoiut  as  Churchmen,  we  have 
on  the  one  hand  this  earthbom  intrus  eness,  en- 
tering where  angels  might  fear  to  treaa,  and  un- 
dertaking to  expound  to  us  each  stage  of  the 
process  by  which  the  Bedeemer  fulfils  His  words, 
"This  is  My  body."   And  failing,  as  sudi  temer- 


WMOIOCOFf  MSOUmON  TBT  OMIT 
(ANM  wirf  BO  TiSi  CHART  fto.  3) 


182  SOME  FEATUBES  OF  THE  FAITH. 

ity  ever  must,  to  produce  intellectual  conviction  of 
the  truest  kind,  from  vigorous  minds  who  pursue 

tnith  and  truth  only  wherever  it  leads,  force*  is 
introdnood  (and  that  of  a  kind  foreign  to  the  whole 
method  of  the  Saviour),  to  hold  together  the  parts 
of  a  uon-liunian  argument,  which  is  elaborated  ex- 
pressly to  satisfy  distinctively  human  inquiries. 

On  the  other  hand  we  have  a  revnilsion  of  feel- 
ing produced  by  this  strange  gospel,  leading  other 
thousands  to  believe  that  they  are  called  upon,  as 
it  would  seem,  not  so  much  to  attain  to  a  just  ap- 
preciation of  what  Christ  designs  for  them,  as  to 
out-root  this  monstrous  error. 

These  therefore,  since  they  must  first  do  their 
work  of  destruction,  tell  us  that  there  is  nothii^ 
to  explain  in  the  Sacrament  of  the  Lord's  Supper, 
simply,  they  say,  because  nothing  extraordinary  or 
wonderful  has  any  part  in  the  matter ;  and  so  these, 
too,  fail  to  satisfy  hungering  and  expectant  human- 
ity, which  will  not  readily  believe  that  there  i^;,  in 
our  Lord's  words  instituting  this  Sacrament,  notli- 
ing  more  than  the  highly-wrought  langu/»  of  in- 
tense Spirituality. 

If  we  may  again  refer  to  growth  in  the  nat- 
ural world,  whatever  we  may  say  about  it,  it  is 
certainly  a  fact,  agreed  to  by  all.    The  man  who, 


•  Note  G. 


80ME  FKATUREM  OF  TUE  FAITli. 


183 


after  six  thousand  years  of  the  world's  confessed 
failure,  professes  to  explain  this  fact  to  us,  and 
proceeds  to  beat  us  if  we  do  not  conscientiously 

accept  his  explanation,  is  a  liard  pclioolmaster  in- 
deed ;  while  he  who,  recoiling  from  this  severity, 
strives  to  befriend  lis  by  telling  us  that  growth 
is  a  sheer  delusion,  may  exhibit  kindly  qualities 
of  heart,  but  his  liead  disqualities  him  for  the 
guideship  he  1ms  assumed. 


CHAPTEB  XIV. 


HOLY  couiivmoN  (the  acosaig  sacbifigss). 
§  100. 

¥2^  ENDEAVORING  to  attain  to  a  just  view  of 
■  the  Holy  Communion,  it  will  be  neoenazy  to 
look  a  little  into  some  preliminazy  matters,  and 
among  them,  first,  to  see  if  tiwre  was  anything  at 
all  similar  in  the  ancient  Church  of  Qod  among 
the  Jews. 

The  unity  of  the  Bible,  the  oneness  of  the  Old 

Testament  with  the  New,  is  in  no  wise  more 
evinced  than  by  the  way  in  which  the  Jewish  Sac- 
rifices prepare  mankind  for  the  Great  Sacrifice  of 
Christ  upon  the  cross;  and  the  very  real  manner 
in  which  the  Passover  foreshadows  the  Lord's 
Supper. 

In  this  respect,  preeminently,  the  law  was  our 
''schoolmaster  to  bring  us  unto  Christ." 


SOME  FEATUSES  OF  THE  FAITH.  185 

We  eaimofc  {ucture  to  our  minds  any  oonoep- 
tion  of  the  Jewish  ChiUGh  throughout  its  long 
history,  without  giving  a  central  place  to,  and 
focussing  all  the  religious  aspirations  of  the  peo- 
ple, so  far  as  outward  expression  goes,  in,  their 
Sacrifices  . 

The  solemnity  which  attached  to  these,  and  the 
reverent,  trustful  manner  in  which  both  priests 
and  people  performed  the  parts  that  fell  to  each,  in 
the  observance  of  the  several  sacrificial  feasts,  can 
escape  no  one;  and  in  the  economy  of  God,  was 
intended  to  escape  no  one. 

§  101. 

It  is  not  too  far  from  the  mark  for  the  ordinary 
busy  man  of  to-day  to  summarize  and  grasp,  as  at 
least  a  vigorous  outline  of  things  ancient  and  Jew- 
ish, that  the  religion  of  the  first  people  of  God  was 
one  wherein  praise  to  Jehovah  took  a  body  to  itself 
in  the  shape  of  fragrant  incense;  and  prayer,  in 
the  equally  physical  embodiment  of  a  smoking  sac- 
rifice. 

They  were  instructed  to  believe  that  in  the  due 
performance  of  certain  sacrifices,  by  duly  author- 
ized servants  of  God,  and  iu  their  attendance  at 
and  reliance  upon  those  sacrifices,  the  taking  away 
of  their  sins  was  effected. 


186 


SOME  FKATUBE8  OF  THE  FAITH. 


They  clung  to,  and  at  no  inconsiderable  cost 
maintained,  these  sacrifices,  and  the  instrumenta 
of  worship,  for  no  other  reason  and  with  no  less 
hope,  than  that  they  were  the  means,  sanctioned, 
appointed,  and  commanded  by  Jehovah  Himself, 
whereby  their  sins  should  be  obliterated  and  ut- 
terly taken  away. 

This  was  the  Jewish  mind  on  this,  the  greatest 
subject  that  occupied  the  miad  of  a  Jew. 

And  one  bred  in  this  reputa'  le  faith,  and  fullv 
conversant  with  it,  but  who  had  been  further  called 
by  God  into  the  marvellous  light  of  the  Gospel, 
witnesses  that  the  Jews  were  deluded  by  no  earth- 
bom  dream. 

In  the  very  connection,  however,  in  which  this 
testimony  is  given,  onr  Christian  Jew  utters  the 
paradox  which  sums  up  the  whole  matter  that  lies 
immediately  before  us :  the  explanation  of  which 
■Paradox  puts  things  in  the  fullest  and  clearest 
light. 

St.  Paul  is  this  witness  at  once  to  the  Diviiio 
varranty  for  the  hope  of  the  Jews  in  their  Mosaic 
Sacrifices,  and  to  the  inherent  powerlessness  of 
those  sacrifices  in  and  by  themselves,  to  take  away 
sin. 

So  firm  is  the  great  apostle  in  his  belief  that 
those  sacrifices  were  efficacious,  that  he  bases  the 


SOME  FEATURES  OF  TUE  FAITH.  187 


prevailing  force  of  the  Sacrifice  of  Christ  on  the 
likeness  it  bore  to  the  Jewish  Sacrifices. 

These  are  St.  Paul's  words :  "For  if  the  blood 
of  bulls  and  of  goats,  and  the  ashes  of  an  heifer 
sprinkling  the  unclean,  sanctitieth  to  the  purify- 
ing of  the  flesh,  how  much  more  shall  the  blood  of 
Christ"  (Ileb.  ix.  13). 

This  is  indisputable  endorsement  of  the  Jewish 
Sacrifices  without  any  qualification  whatever,  as 
to  the  extent  to  which  these  institutions  of  God 
transcend  the  vulgar  apprehension. 

But  in  the  very  next  breath  St.  Paul  says  em- 
phatically, that  these  sacrifices  regarded  in  and  by 
themselves  are  impotent  and  useless. 

His  words  are  unmistakable:  ''For  the  law 
having  a  shadow  of  good  things  to  come,  and  not 
the  very  image  of  the  things,  can  never  with  those 
sacrifices  which  they  offered  year  by  year,  contin- 
ually make  the  comers  thereto  perfect.  For  then 
would  they  not  have  ceased  to  be  offered.  Because 
that  the  worshippers  once  purged  should  have  '  ad 
no  more  conscience  of  sins  .  .  .  for  it  is  not 
possible  that  the  blood  of  bulls  and  of  goats  should 
take  away  sins"  (Heb.  x.  1-4). 

Here  the  strained  reason  is  relieved  by  an  as- 
sertion which  comforts,  because  of  its  full  natural 
agreement  with  our  ordinary  perceptions.  And 


188  80MC  FBATITBKg  OW  THE  FAITH. 

HOW  what  are  we  to  do  in  the  face  of  this  contradic- 
tion :  the  blood  of  bulls  and  of  goats  takes  awav 
sins ;  and  the  blood  of  bulls  and  of  goats  does  not 
take  away  sins? 

§102. 

The  first  thing  we  notice  about  this  paradox 
of  St.  Paul's  is  that  the  ins'-ired  writer  himself 
saw  it,  and  gave  it  the  grt  ■  -  ninence,  with 
every  perceptible  intention  v  *  \»King  the  contra- 
diction a  lash  for  the  laggrrd  spiritual  discern- 
ment of  his  Jewish  countrymen. 

As  though  he  had  said.  Once  take  a  low,  mate- 
rialistic view  of  your  sacrifices,  and  you  are  re- 
duced to  the  most  pitiable  plight 

There  must  therefore  be  a  higher  significance 
about  these  sacrifices  of  bulls  and  goats,  than  their 
cost  in  shekels,  their  weight,  their  unblemished 
condition,  and  the  minutiae  with  which  the  solemn 
offering  up  and  eating  were  conducted  by  the 
priests. 

They  stood  in  the  place  at  least  of  the  real 
cause  of  the  remission  jf  the  sins  of  men. 

These  sacrifices  w<;re  to  pass  current  as  worth 
the  full  value  before  God  of  the  trust  that  was 
reposed  in  them. 

Men  were  not  only  inclined  to  read  on  the 
face  of  them  the  Divine  sanction  for  hope  and  con- 


80MK  rXATUXXB  OF  THE  FAITH. 


189 


fidence  in  theia,  but  a  command,  well  understood 
as  unmistakably  given  ii  oin  heaven,  was  known  to 
lie  upon  all  the  nation  to  accept  these  and  to  offer 
them  as  mysterious  indeed,  but  nevertheless  as 
real  payment  in  full  for  their  delinquencies  before 
the  law. 

And  now  when  St  Paul  says  that  these  were 
at  once  the  means  of  taking  away  sins,  and  in 
their  nature  incapable  of  taking  away  sins,  he 
must  mean  that  an  added  value  was  given  them  by 
God,  which  if  kept  in  view  explained  how  tlioy 
could  be  instrumental  in  taking  away  sins ;  yet  if 
ignored,  leaves  them  poor,  slaughtered  cattle  and 
nothing  more. 

§103. 

Now  we  are  bound  to  cast  about  us  and  search 
among  the  common  things  of  daily  experience,  if 
we  know  of  any  similar  case,  where  a  thing  may 
be  said  to  be  and  yet  not  to  be  the  article  it  pro- 
fesses to  be.  A  business  community  will  have  no 
difficulty  in  discovering  that  a  bank-note  occupies 
this  position  exactly. 

One  man  may  call  a  bank-note  monev,  another 
man  may  den_\  that  it  is  money,  and  yet  both  be 
right  in  a  good  and  honest  sense. 

Of  the  dollar  bill  it  may  be  said,  that  it  has 
the  power  of  remitting  to  the  extent  of  the  demand 


100 


80m  7KATITBX8  OF  THS  VAITH. 


written  on  its  face,  any  money  debt  for  the  pay- 
ment of  which  it  is  offered.  And  yet  a  man  may 
jnstly  refuse  to  accept  it  as  money,  urging  that  it 
is  at  best  only  the  promise  of  money. 

But  we  ^11  understand  how  the  paradox  is 
soiv'ed  and  the  confusion  allayed. 

If  therefore  wo  retain  this  familiar  idea  of  the 
dollar  bill,  its  value,  and  its  intrinsic  worthless- 
ness,  and  come  with  this  imagery  ready  at  hand 
to  aid  U8  in  straightening  out  the  matter  St.  Paul 
so  forcibly  lays  before  us,  we  shall  understand  him 
thoroug^y,  and  estimate  aocnrately  and  intelli- 
gently the  office  and  efficacy  of  the  Jewish  Sacri- 
fice 

As  every  bank-note  bill,  which  we  conuno  •  iy 
hand  over  to  pa^  for  the  goods  we  purdiase,  has 
value  only  in  so  far  as  it  faithfully  represmts  a 
certain  amount  of  gold  which  may  be  had  on  pre- 
sentation of  the  note  if  required ;  so  the  sacrifices 
of  the  Jewish  Church  acquire  their  value  and 
effectiveness  in  buying  the  remission  of  sins,  if 
we  may  so  speak,  in  as  much  as  they  are  the  prom- 
issory notes  of  Him  who  cannot  lie.  They  bear 
His  sign-manual,  and  guarantee  that  the  gold  of 
true  atonement  shall  be  fordicoming  in  the  sacri- 
fice upon  the  cross  of  Jesus  Christ,  the  Son  of 
God — ^the  Saviour  of  the  world. 


some  irXATUBBS  OV  TUB  rAITU.  191 


8104. 

Until  that  time  arrives,  the  saorifioM  shall  pass 
as  the  accredited  currency  of  heaven. 

As  soon,  however,  as  the  Messiah  comes,  and 
tlio  true  offering  is  made,  all  these  shall  Ix?  called 
ill,  their  full  face  value  registered,  and  their  pur- 
c'liiising  power  acknowledged  and  honored  to  the 
uttermost. 

But  their  spiritual  value  as  auxiliary  tustru- 
mcnts  in  the  remission  of  sins,  is  due  to  the  volun- 
tary act  of  Qod  in  choosing  to  use  these,  instead 
of  any  other  inpotent  kind  of  thing,  as  material 
upon  which  to  write  His  gracious  ^'ntention. 

Thus  they  may  fearlessly  he  said  to  he  at  once 
ahle  and  powerless  to  take  away  sins,  according 
to  the  way  we  regard  them. 

The  blood  of  bulls  and  of  goats  as  such,  utterly 
without  force  or  efficacy  to  wash  away  human  guilt 
from  God's  sigi»t;  may  nevertheless,  since  the 
Almighty  has  WTitten  His  Divine  and  inviolable 
promise  of  pardon  ou  them,  be  said  without  hesita- 
tion "to  sanctify  to  the  purifying  of  the  flesh." 

§105. 

Now  that  this  earth  has  received  upon  its  sur- 
face that  stupendous  reality  to  which  all  the  sym- 
bds  of  atonement  pointed,  we  can  readily  perceive 


192  SOME  FEATURES  OF  TUE  FAITH. 

that  f  r<»n  thii  inexlurattiUe  trearary  of  merit,  all 

these  ancient  and  regular  Jewish  drafts  have  been 
duly  paid.  And  so  the  whole  system  of  saorifioes 
kno\\'n  to  the  ancient  people  of  Qod,  and  scrupu- 
lously maintained  by  them,  commends  itself  even 
to  Christian  eyes  as  worthy  of  the  wisdom,  of  the 
love  and  faithfulness,  of  God. 

And  here  it  may  be  said  that  we  are  under  ud 
obligation  to  believe  that  this  view  of  the  matter 
was  altogether  beyond  Jewish  apprehensio:.  The 
one  central  and  inspiring  popular  prospect  of  the 
Messiah  could  not  be  wholly  dissociated  from  the 
solemnities  of  the  atonement. 

"No  one  could  suppose  that  the  slaying  of  the 
one  goat  or  the  sending  of  the  other  into  the  wil- 
derness actually  expiated  the  offences  of  the  whole 
people.  As  individuals  they  were  accustomed  to 
bring  costlier  sacrifices  for  single  transgressions, 
for  involuntary  transgressions,  for  transgressions 
against  the  merely  ceremonial  law;  it  was  impos- 
sible for  them  to  believe  that  the  innumerable  sins 
of  all  the  people  of  Israel  during  a  wliolf  year 
eould  be  truly  atoned  for  by  a  comparatively  in- 
significent  offering. 

"In  this  lay  the  safety  of  the  whole  service. 
Had  they  been  permitted  to  bring  individual  sacri- 
fices for  individual  offences  against  the  moral  law 


80MK  FKATL'KEH  OF  Till;  KAl  i  tl. 


103 


— ittcrificcs  offered  at  the  cost  of  the  individual 
offender — there  would  bav(>  l)crii  an  irresistible 
tendency  to  regard  the  expiation  as  real  and  oom- 
plete. 

"Rut  the  two  troats  of  tlic  siroat  thiv  of  Atoi»»)- 
iiK  iit  wvvo  v'uh'd  at  the  public  <'•'^t;  they  •.  id 
not  iia{)03e  jurden  upon  a  solitary  Individual 
amoti-;st  all  the  thousands  of  Israel ;  and  yet  they 
were  )  expiate  innumerable  offences.  The  sjrm- 
bolical  character  of  the  expiation  conid  not  fail  to 
be  recogniaed."* 

•  Dr.  Dale,  Jnrtok  Temple  antl  ChrintiaH  Church.  p«a»  tM. 
Iloddvr  a  atotqrbtoB. 


CHAPTER  XV. 


HOLY  COMMUNION  (tHE  ATONEMENT). 
§  106. 

ITH  this  view  of  the  use  and  value  of  Jewish 
Sacrifices  in  our  mind,  we  may  turn  for  a 

moment  to  rofloct  on  the  reasonableness  of  tho 
place  which  the  Atonement  has  in  our  relationship 
to  God. 

We  may  perhaps  best  see  it  from  the  point  of 
view  of  that  too  large  class  of  persons  who,  continu- 
ing on  in  an  irregular  course  of  life,  answer  the  ap- 
peals of  conscience  with  the  cheap  (and  we  shall 
see  how  cheap)  promise  of  living  some  day  before 
death,  as  a  true  Christian  ought  to  live. 

If  we  would  again  refrain  from  too  deep  delv- 
ing, and  occupy  ourselves  with  actualities  pressing 
and  pnaentf  we  shall  be  led  to  take  note  of  the  ex- 
tent to  which  this  false  pnnnising  is  indulged,  and 


80MS  FBATUSES  OF  THB  FAITH.  195 

of  how  much  spurious  hope  and  confidence  it  is 
the  parent. 

God  is  right  and  I  am  wrong.  God  cannot 
change,  and  as  the  creature  is  meant  to  turn  to  the 
Creator,  the  change  of  attitude  must  take  place  in 
mc.  This  I  acknowledge.  It  must  come;  and 
when  I  finish  this  pursuit  which  now  engrosses  me, 
and  to  which  I  stand  committed,  I  shall  set  my 
house  in  order,  and  live  closely  to  the  Christian 
rule  of  right. 

Here  this  strange  but  too  often  perfectly  satis- 
factory promise  to  self,  complacently  and  with 
equal  frequency,  ends. 

How  many  a  genial  soul  sees  himself  wrapped 
up  warmly  and  securely  in  "the  baseless  fabric" 
of  this  "vision",  which,  on  close  examination, 
everybody  is  convinced  can  only  be  begotten  of  a 
diseased  brain;  and  which  stands  doubly  doomed 
to  disappointment,  when  we  remember  the  fact 
witnessed  to  by  the  popular  proverb,  ''Hell  is 
paved  with  good  intentions;"  and  again  wlien  we 
recogOiize,  after  some  honest  weighing  of  the  mat- 
ter, the  sin  against  common  sense  which  we  incur 
by  thinking  that  future  rectitude,  even  when  as- 
sured, can  atone  for  past  offences  against  the  eter- 
nal law  of  righteousness. 


196 


SOXB  FEATUBBS  OF  THX  FAITH. 


§107. 

A  man  has  been  running  an  account  with  his 
grocer  for  years,  continually  adding  to  his  debt 
without  making  any  payments.  At  last  a  change 
comes  over  him.  Constraining  circumstances,  a 
remnant  of  conscience  and  of  wholesome  minded- 
ness,  induces  him  to  recognize  his  injustice  to  this 
merchant  in  thus  piling  up  an  account  beyond  the 
point  at  which  he  could  reasonably  assure  himself 
that  it  was  within  the  limits  of  his  pnwpects  to  pay 
the  whole. 

He  will  continue  this  procedure  no  longer.  His 
household  are  informed  of  his  new  and  creditable 

resolve,  that  henceforward  every  purchase  made 
must  be  paid  for,  or  failing  this,  the  desired  goods 
must  be  continently  done  without. 

Now  no  matter  to  how  full  an  extent  we  render 
the  tribute  of  approval  and  praise  to  this  domestic 
reform,  we  cannot  elevate  it  into  a  full  and  satisfac- 
tory settlement  of  the  long-standing  and  formid- 
able account. 

It  does  very  well  for  the  future,  whenever  wo 
find  ourselves  confronted  with  that  problem;  but 
as  regards  the  matter  in  hand,  and  as  a  settlement 
to  date  of  past  indebtedness,  it  has  the  serious  fault 
of  passing  the  whole  thing  by,  and  leaving  the 


SOME  FEATURES  OF  THE  FAITH.  197 


bulky  claim  as  undiminished  and  disturbing  a 

reality  as  ever. 

The  good  sense,  which  in  every  day  business 
life  is  shocked  by  any  such  irrational  notions  as 
these,  seems  to  be  painfully  absent  from  that  fairy- 
world  into  which  the  religious  moods  of  many  per- 
sons lead  them. 

But  Christianity  is  emphatically  not  a  fairy- 
land in  this  sense.  Effects  are  not  produced  in  our 
holy  religion  and  our  relationship  to  God  without 
efficient  causes. 

§  108. 

The  religion  of  Christ  does  not  warrant  the 
simple  and  childish  confidence  that  stem  realities 
can  at  a  breath,  or  as  by  some  magic  wand,  be 
transformed  into  sheer  nothingness,  leaving:  no 
more  trace  of  their  existence  than  if  they  had 
never  been. 

The  very  unexplainableness  of  this  fond  be- 
lief, seems  to  render  it  attractive  and  acceptable 
to  untutored  minds ;  and  many  there  are  who,  from 
the  feeble  use  they  make  of  their  intellects  in  the 
service  and  worship  of  God,  deserve  to  be  judicial- 
ly classed  as  untutored,  no  matter  what  their  secu- 
lar attainments  may  be;  "for  by  their  fruits  ve 
shall  know  Uiffln." 


198 


SOME  F£ATUB£S  OF  THE  FAITH. 


This  merchant's  bill  cannot  be  settled  by  even 
the  very  best  and  sincerest  resolution  to  be  honest, 
and  to  pay  as  we  go  for  the  time  to  come. 

Noble  as  this  determined  course  may  be,  and 
difficult  to  the  self  indulged,  it  is  no  settlement. 

What  then  is  to  be  done  ? 

To  turn  from  the  question  of  victuals  to  that  of 
vices  and  their  payment,  we  may  remark  that  our 
best  efforts  to  serve  and  obey  God,  under  the  in- 
struction which  the  revelation  of  our  Saviour  Jesus 
Christ  has  given  us,  and  with  His  Divine  aid,  can 
only  eventuate  in  our  attaining  to  a  point  of  excel- 
lenoe  which  may  deserve  to  be  called  dutiful,  but 
which  has  nothing  over  and  above  in  the  way  of 
merit  to  devote  to  any  weak  part  in  the  past ;  for 
we  are  at  best,  that  is,  when  our  best  resolves  have 
been  consistently  lived  up  to,  ''unprofitable  ser- 
vants." 

We  have  done  what  it  was  our  duty  to  do,  noth- 
ing more. 

Tbe  debt  incurred  before  this  tardy  rectitude 
emerged,  remains. 

§  109. 

No  man  likes  to  think  of  this.  Device  after 
device  is  embraced  in  the  hope  that  it  may,  in  a 
kind  of  half  legitimate  way  at  least,  distract  the 
thoughts  from  the  forbidding  problem. 


SOME  FEATUBE8  OF  TUE  FAITH.  199 

lu  the  presence  of  this  question,  fairly  put, 
humanity  at  its  best  despairs ;  and  from  the  first 
and  earliest  ages  seems  instinctively  to  have  de- 
spaired. 

It  was  to  meet  this  hopeless  and  terrifying  de- 
ficit that  sacrifices  smoked  on  Jewish  altars,  and, 
whether  understood  in  the  high  spiritual  sense  of 
St.  Paul,  or  less  loftily,  gave  comfort  to  Jewish 
hearts ;  and  did  both  with  indisputable  Divine  war- 
ranty. 

These  sacrifices,  understood  as  temporary  sub- 
btitutes,  pointed  to  and  stood  for  a  power  over  and 
abovt,  man's,  and  which  is  able  achieve  what  to 
man  is  the  blank  impossibh. 

The  sacrifice  of  Jesus  Christ,  consummated  on 
the  Cross  of  Calvary ;  the  splendour  of  that  life  of 
exalted  obedience;  the  life-blood  of  incarnate  God 
poured  out  on  this  earth,  voluntarily,  as  a  friendly 
act  to  us  in  our  desperate  circumstances,  to  save  us 
from  the  appalling,  never  ending  consequences  of 
our  folly,  this  places  within  the  reach  of  each  one 
of  us,  the  wealth  wherewith  to  pay  our  large  debts. 

And  if  we  awake  all  the  drowsy  faculties  of  our 
being  into  clear  recognition  of  what  has  actually 
been  done  for  us,  we  can  pay  all  that  so  justly  lies 
against  us,  to  the  very  last  cent. 


300 


SOKE  F£ATUBX8  OF  THK  VAITH. 


But  we  must  each  give  the  matter  our  truest 
and  most  serious  attention,  and  that  at  once. 

If  any  man  think  that  because  this  wealth  is 
wUhin  his  reach  now  in  this  world,  and  that  as  he 
cannot  even  by  any  license  he  might  take,  overdraw 
a  sinner's  share  (the  deposit  is  so  incalculably 
large),  he  may  therefore  project  his  career  of  god- 
less irregularity  indefinitely  into  the  future,  he 
must  ponder  the  grim  fact  that  this  giant  mercy 
is  suspended  on  the  single  thread  of  this  life ;  and 
of  all  things  that  hiive  an  end,  life  is  the  very 
brittlest. 

§  110. 

Those  who  draw  the  dallier's  hope  from  the 
good  fortune  of  the  eleventh  hour  labourers  in  the 
Vineyard,  will  be  wise  to  reflect  that  no  one  asked 
these  men  sooner  than  the  last  hour.  When  our 
Lord's  "householder"  of  the  parable  demanded  of 
them,  "Why  stand  ye  here  all  the  day  idle  ?"  they 
say  unto  him  with  av  honesty  that  goes  undisputed, 
"Because  no  man  hath  hired  us." 

In  our  Christian  land,  with  the  church  bells 
ringing  their  more  than  weekly  peals,  which  are 
also  true  appeals,  there  rmains  scant  refuge  in- 
deed for  those  dilatory  ones  who  are  at  the  same 
time,  men  and  women  in  whom  intelligence  has 
not  died. 


80MX  FEATUBKS  OF  TH£  FAITH.  201 


§  111. 

It  may  take  a  large  draft  in  our  case. 

The  lateness  of  the  draft  may  possibly  dis- 
hearten us.  But  our  whole  soul,  now  actively 
alive,  observes  that  we  stand  confronted  with  a 
double  peril;  on  the  one  hand  our  voiccful  past 
crjos  for  a  satisfying  justice;  on  the  other  lies  the 
supreme  risk,  which  inaction  involves,  of  ('.oing 
high  dishonor  to  the  person  and  ofSces  of  Him  who 
stood  fortL  in  our  behalf  ;  and  that  for  the  very 
purpose  of  wiping  out  just  such  accounts  as  ours. 
The  weightier  these  are,  the  greater  the  honor  done 
the  Saviour,  in  believing  that  His  Sacrifice  does 
not  even  here  fall  short  of  full  effectiveness. 

"Naught  can  I  bring,  dear  Lord,  fr :  aU  I  owe ; 
Tet  let  mj  full  heart  what  tt  can,  bestow. 
Like  Mary'a  gift,  let  mj  devotion  provt!, 
ForgiTeB  gnntlr,  how  I  greatly  love." 

This  must  be  our  attitude.  This  is  for  us  the 
whole  matter. 

But  it  explains  that  otherwise  insoluble  prob- 
lem— the  forgiveness  of  sins;  that  doctrine  so 
familiar  to  our  lips,  but  in  reality  so  violently 
opposed  to  all  our  experience,  as  to  be  a  stumbling- 
block  of  really  colossal  dimensions  to  all  of  us. 

Let  us  examine  the  difficulty. 


202 


SOMK  FKATUBX8  OF  THB  FAITH. 


§112. 

A  man  does  a  crooked,  an  indefensible  act,  and 
in  proportion  to  his  spirituality  or  general  moral- 
ity, experiences  inward  discomfort  and  unrest. 
Conscience  registers  the  deed  and  rings  out  the 
sentence  doe  to  the  offence. 

It  cannot  do  otherwise.  This  is  its  native 
ofBxx.  God  made  it  a  minister  of  fact,  and  it 
deals  with  facts;  it  adds  them  up  and  makes  no 
error  in  the  count 

Where  not  impaired  by  a  course  of  violent 
handling,  or  dragged  from  its  throne  by  deliberate 
abuse,  this  agent  of  Gkxi  does  ita  work  faithfully 
and  well.  It  tells  the  truth ;  for  it  knows  nothing, 
it  has  no  means  of  understanding  or  computing 
anything  above  or  beneath  its  mathematical  process 
of  rigid  registration. 

In  men  not  wholly  depraved  and  besotted,  tlioii. 
this  voice  is  alive,  and  makes  the  wrong  act  to 
live  after  it  has  transpired. 

Everybody  knows  what  a  reputed  authority  on 
the  subject  so  eloquently  tells  us  about — 

"All  the  deep  and  shadderii^  chill 
Which  follows  fut  the  d«eda  of  III." 

A  man  of  honest  purpose,  in  the  main,  who 
feels  this  disquiet  within  him  on  account  of  ac- 


gOMK  FEATUBX8  OF  TUB  FAITH. 


203 


tions  involuntarily  present  to  his  mind  (like  faces 
he  never  wanted  to  look  upon,  and  hoped  that  he 
never  should  again  behold),  is  tempted  by  the  over- 
powering witness  of  this  unimpeachable  monitor 
within,  to  despair  of  doing  any  virtuous  and  re- 
ligious duty  henceforth,  without  running  into  the 
still  greater  infamy  of  hypocrisy.  Conscience, 
the  k'st  thing  that  goes  to  make  his  individuality, 
certainly  tlie  most  consistently  upright,  tells  him 
that  he  is  not  what  he  ought  to  be;  and  this  is  far 
from  encouraging  to  any  self-respecting  person: 
to  many  indeed  if  there  is  no  rescue  from  it,  it 
must  be  most  formidable. 

Conscience,  which  he  has  not  the  courage,  the 
temerity,  to  face,  is  against  him;  and  he  knows, 
and  silently  acknowledges,  that  in  all  this  antag- 
onism an<l  calling  to  account,  conscience  is  right. 

But  here  we  take  our  stand,  with  our  back  to 
the  wall,  and  fight  for  our  life. 

Conscience  is  not  the  vicegerent  of  the  Al- 
mighty on  earth. 

Christianity  is  not  a  mere  elaboration  of  con- 
science. If  it  were,  it  must  be  content  to  battle  for 
first  place  merely  amongst  the  philosophies. 

The  Saviour  of  mankind  has  not  left  the  ap- 
plication of  His  solaces  to  conscience.  Conscience 


1  I 


m 


204       80MX  nsArvrnm  or  trk  vaith. 

performs  a  diflFerent  function,  and  His  solaces  are 
otherwise  extended. 

Our  Lord  Jesus  Christ  founded  a  Sociotv 
against  which  "the  gates  of  hell  shall  not  prevail," 
for  the  express  purpose  of  sheltering  those  who  run 
away  from  the  inezoraUe  and  inrapportable 
clamor  of  an  accusing  conscience. 

The  Church  of  God  does  not  exist,  her  edifices 
are  not  built  nor  her  ministry  divinely  ordered, 
merely  to  echo  those  interior  voices  that  madden 
and  distract  us. 

§113. 

God  made  conscience,  it  is  true,  and  He  does 
not  deny  His  authorship,  nor  recall  the  commis- 
sion given  to  His  trusty  agent. 

But  the  achievement  on  earth,  the  voluntary 
sacrifice,  the  obedience  to  the  deatli  of  the  Son  of 
God  clothed  in  human  nature,  gives  to  Christ  the 
right  to  say — and  there  is  no  povirer  to  gainsay — 
"Come  unto  Me  all  ye  that  labor  and  are  heavy 
laden,  and  I  will  give  you  rest."  "Weary  and 
heavy  laden,"  that  is,  with  the  awful  tension  of 
soul  produced  by  our  being  a  combination  of  in- 
ward condemnation  (a  condenmation  to  which  we 
set  our  seal),  a  desire  for  release  from  our  bonds, 
and  a  fear,  lest  on  amendment  of  life  or  the  appli- 


•OMB  WMArvam  or  tux  faith. 


205 


cation  to  Christianity  for  relief,  a  worse  thing, 
viz.,  liypocrisy,  happen  to  us. 
Misery  irf'eod  is  tliis. 

"Weary  and  heavy  laden,"  are  words  which, 
when  used  by  one  who  well  knows  the  aevere  road 
we  travel,  mean  this,  and  nothing  else  or  less  than 
this;  the  depression  of  a  heart,  not  wholly  de- 
praved, under  the  ring  of  a  condemning  conscience. 

But  Jesus  Christ  the  Saviour  of  mankind  is 
the  succorer  of  ttiose  for  whom  human  help  is  no 
liolp;  and  Jesns  Christ  is  above  oven  conscience, 
whicli  must  take  its  place  with  all  the  rest  of  us  as 
one  of  IHs  creatures. 

It  is  the  Church's  neighborly  office  (Luke  x. 
36),  to  proclaim  the  priceless  privilege  every  man 
may  now  enjoy,  of  appeal  to  Christ  Himself,  even 
from  what  we  rightly  call  our  own  inward  better 
self,  Conscience ;  and  He  who  judged  the  woman 
taken  in  adultery,  for  whom  Conscience  prepared 
a  stone-heap  and  willing,  hostile  arms,  bids  Con- 
science—our keeper — stand  aside  that  He  may 
deal  directly  with  our  case. 

The  Church  gives  us  a  supreme  and  prevailing 
Advocate  and  Mediator ;  and  as  we  come,  we  learn 
the  great  historical,  central  fact  of  existence,  that 
that  past  of  ours,  that  peace-robbing  course  we 
pursued,  and  for  which  all  our  resourcefulness  can 


SOtt         SOMS  WMATVmU  OW  THB  ITAITH. 


produce  no  answer,  no  payment,  it  not  beyond  a 
complete  lettlonent,  thongb  far  beyond  the  ho^ 
icon  that  boimda  human  hope;  and  that  in  the 
pretence  of  this  peerless  settlement,  conscience  it- 
self  stands  wrapt  in  adoring  approval 

g  114. 

This  hig^  settlement  is  made  for  us  before  the 
holy  tribunal  of  God  the  Father,  by  the  sacrifice 
of  God  the  Son.  This  is  what  is  meant  by  "the 
foi^veness  of  sins'*  and  "the  blood  shed  for  the 

remission  of  sins." 

Unsystematic  habitr,  of  thinking,  or,  more  ac- 
curately, the  palsy  that  seems  to  overtake  all  our 
reflective  faculties  when  the  subject  before  us  is 
our  eternal  (not  instead  of,  but)  in  addition  to 
our  present  v/elfare,  is  responsible  for  the  exaj;- 
gerated  dimensions  of  the  stumbling-block  whicii 
this  doctrine  has  become  to  most  of  us. 

The  Atonement  which  Christ  our  Saviour  has 
made  for  us  is  a  solid  foundation,  on  which  our 
feet  can  solidly  and  sensibly  rest.  And  yet  there 
is,  verily,  no  airy  magic  about  this  method  of  wip- 
ing out  our  past. 

Payment  has  been  made  in  full  for  every  item 
in  that  dread  account,  which  we  have  long  known 
as  a  morbid  sensation  clinging  to  us — a  chronic, 
dull  ache — which  has  been  a  very  potent  deterrent 


•OMS  FBATVBKB  OF  TUX  VAITB. 

troin  better  thin^pi,  and  from  a  nobler  and  more 
Chrift-liLe  life. 

We  oould  not  see  our  way  thronj^  the  mists  of 
this  malarial  district;  bat  the  oonsiderations 
which  we  have  just  passed  in  review,  wondrously 
dissipate  the  darkness,  and  centre  all  our  soul  on 
the  amazing  i  ^erest  wc  have  sccu  ed  with  God, 
by  Christ  our  Advocate,  who  found  us  out  in  our 
pathless  morans,  and  gives  to  our  feet  a  pathway 
again  to  our  Father  s  gates. 

§115. 

In  the  days  of  the  apostles,  and  during  the  age 
immediately  succeeding,  no  question  seems  to  have 
been  raised  as  to  how  Christ's  dying  for  us  pro- 
cured the  remission  of  our  sins. 

Everybody  was  familiar  witb.  the  religf^  >us  iler 
of  sacrifice,  the  heathen  no  less  than  the  J  v;  ami 
the  central  truth  of  the  Christian  creed — C  hi  i  /» 
voluntary  offering  of  Himself  for  the  siub  the 
world — stiacb  a  deeply  responsive  diord  hi  thi* 
breasts  of  those  early  Christians,  but  one  which 
they  were  content  to  enjoy  without  analyzing. 

It  was  not  by  their  skill  as  dialeotitians  that 
the  apostles  forced  the  attention  and  conviction  of 
the  world:  not  at  all  by  the  faultless  method  of 
presentation  that  their  large  propositions  won  their 
way;  it  was  rather  by  the  stamp  of  power  and 


208 


SOMS  VBATUBES  OF  THS  FAITH. 


reality  that  was  upon  the  men,  and  which  pointed 
to  heaps  of  evidence  of  their  Divine  mission,  stag- 
gering to  the  senses  of  man,  that  the  apostles  dis- 
armed criticism,  and  wanned  indifference  into  dis- 
cipleship. 

Then,  for  two  centuries,  followed  a  reverent 
and  unquestioning  satisfaction  with  the  faith  of 

the  apostles,  held  in  the  exact  language  used  by 
the  apostles.  But  the  intellect  of  the  Church  did 
at  length  begin,  as  it  could  not  fail  to  do,  to  pay 
its  homage  to  the  faith  so  devoutly  received  and 
held  by  so  many  generations  of  Christians. 

"At  first  Christianity's  work  was  in  the  main 
with  the  heart,  and  when  that  was  filled,  it  next 
asserted  its  right  over  the  intellect 

"And  perhaps  it  is  not  difficult  to  see  a  fitness 
in  that  disposition  of  events,  which  committed 
the  teaching  of  the  apostles  to  minds  essentially 
receptive  and  conservative,  that  it  might  be  in- 
wrought into  the  life  of  man  before  it  became  the 
subject  of  subtle  analysis."* 

§  116. 

With  Origen  in  the  East,  and  Irenseus  in  the 
W«jt,  at  the  beginning  of  the  third  wntury,  arose 
a  manifest  desire  to  find  some  answer  for  the 
queries  that  sprang  up  in  men's  minds  in  oonnec- 

•  Wwteott,  CatuM  of  the  Jfew  Teittment,  pat*  838. 


SOME  FSAT17BX8  OF  THS  FAITH.  209 

tion  with  the  Church's  faith  in  the  death  of  Christ, 
and  the  mighty  benefits  accruing  to  us  from  that 
Sacrifice,  made  for  us  and  for  our  salvation. 

What  a  ransom  was,  was  sufficiently  under- 
stood ;  and  that  Christ  paid  the  ransom  for  us  by 
voluntarily  giving  up  His  own  body  and  life  to 
death,  was  firmly  believed.  But  the  absorbing 
(juestion  of  questions  now  became  this :  To  whom 
(lid  the  Redeemer  pay  over  His  priceless  ransom  ? 

There  seems  to  have  been  no  great  delay  be- 
tween the  askini,'  and  the  answering  of  this,  to  us, 
very  pertinent  question. 

The  fathers  solved  it  to  the  satisfaction  of 
their  own,  and  apparently  of  every  suceeeding 
generation  for  a  thousand  years. 

But  when  we  of  to-day  consider  tliat  solution, 
we  are  forced  to  recognize  the  obtrusive  fact  that 
each  age  must  do  its  own  thinking,  and  that  the 
monopoly  is  given  to  no  one  particular  age  in 
hmnan  history. 

The  plain  truth  is,  that  the  fathers'  solution  of 
this  important  matter  does  not  satisfy  us. 

In  fact  it  is  so  far  from  satisfying  us,  that  we 
set  it  aside,  not  only  because  it  is  inadequate  and 
impossible,  but  because  it  is  shocking. 

It  is  said  of  Luther,  that  having  visited  the  city 
of  Home,  and  been  eye-witness  to  the  immorality 


3*10  SOME  F£ATUB£8  OF  THE  FAITH. 

and  openly  uu-Christian  lives  of  ecclesiastics  there, 
both  high  and  low,  he  went  away  more  convinced 
than  ever  before,  of  the  truth  and  Divine  origin  of 
Christianitj.  The  irresistible  reason  for  this  ac- 
cess of  belief  on  Luther^s  part,  was,  he  is  said  to 
have  affirmed,  that  no  religion  less  than  Divine 
could  survive  so  much  hostility  to  its  existence 
from  its  very  defenders. 

The  Lutheran  (and  if  it  be  not  Luther's,  and 
if  Luther  did  not  actually  see  what  he  is  said  to 
liave  seen,  I  shall  regret  the  use  of  the  story  even 
as  an  illustration),  reflection  is  timely  when  we 
remember  that  the  fathers  taught  the  world  that 
the  life  of  the  Saviour  Jesus  Christ,  was  paid  as 
a  mnsom  to  the  Devil* 

Here  and  there  through  the  world  and  the  cen- 
turies, we  find  a  voice  raised  against  this  teaching; 
but  the  main  current  of  Christian  thought  was,  for 
a  millennium,  in  tranquil  agreement  with  this 
startling  explanation  of  the  great  difficulty  of  the 
remission  of  sins,  and  the  grounds  upon  which  the 
remission  rationally  rests. 

§117. 

Anselm,  Archbishop  of  Canterbury,  at  the  bo- 
ginning  of  the  twelfth  century,  wrote  a  treatise 

•  "It  to  hud  to  M7  whttbw  Iloljr  Scriptnn  i«  man  iajund 
by  tbOM  who  umII  It  or  by  thoM  who  defend  It"  <Btob4«  WMt- 
cott.  fito  MMo  in  the  Ohmvh,  PnfM*. 


SOMK  FBATUBM  OF  THK  FAITH.  211 

with  the  intention  of  stemming  this  tide,  and  to  a 
great  extent  succeeded;  but  that  the  popular  no- 
tion may  be  justly  described  as  a  tide,  and  in  full 
flow  so  late  as  AnseWs  time,  is  shown  by  the  sig- 
nificant tact  he  was  obliged  to  use  in  presenting 
his  views,  of  which  yre  shall  see  something  in  a 
moment. 

Grego;  \  of  Xyssa,  brother  of  St.  Basil,  and 
who  was  called  by  the  Emperor  Theodosius  "the 
common  pillar  of  the  Church,"  and  who  was  pres- 
ent at  the  council  of  Constantinople  in  A.  D.  381 ; 
wrote  and  published  an  elaboration  of  the  common 
theory  of  the  way  in  which  the  Saviour's  death 
atoned  for  the  sins  of  the  world. 

His  main  position  was  that  the  whole  matter 
of  Christ's  redemption  of  us  was  effected  by  a 
trick.  The  Almighty  was  forced  to  have  recourse 
to  a  ruse  in  order  to  do  us  this  great  good. 

Oregory  of  Kyssa  says  that  by  that  awful  act 
in  the  garden  of  Eden,  by  which  the  fountain  head 
of  our  humanity  entered  the  domain  of  sin,  and 
dragged  us  all  with  him,  he  drew  us  under  the 
sovereignty  of  the  devil. 

The  Saviour  volunteers  to  be  our  ransom,  and 
to  give  Himself  up  to  the  ruler  of  the  power  of 
darkness,  if  only  he  will  let  us  all  go  free. 

Satan,  in  whose  dread  kingdom  we  were  all 


212  SOMX  VBATUBBS  OF  THX  FAITH. 

slaves,  considers  the  proposal  with  a  certain  degree 
of  favor;  and  after  mneh  weighing  of  the  advan- 
tages and  the  possible  loraes,  finally  deddes  to 
accept  the  great  ^change. 

The  shackles  are  ther^ore  removed,  and  hu- 
manity is  liberated.  But  the  devil  soon  finds  that 
he  has  reason  to  repent  of  his  bargain;  for  as 
events  proceed,  he  is  compelled  to  recognize  the 
fact  that  even  his  supreme  shrewdness  has  been 
overreached. 

He  is  unablo  to  retain  in  his  custody  the  won- 
drous Personality  whom  he  has  accepted  as  the 
ransom  for  our  race.  Christ,  by  the  exercise  of 
His  onmipotence,  bursts  through  His  prison,  and 
the  spoiler  is  despoiled  of  his  Prey,  not  recogniz- 
ing that  under  the  humble  guise  of  the  Kansom- 
er's  humanity,  the  awful  nature  of  God  was  con- 
cealed. 

Gr^ry  then  sums  up  his  argi*  by  seri- 
ously maintaining  that  deception  ^e  devil's 
part  in  the  matter  of  Adam  and  Eve,  warranted 
the.  discomfiture  of  the  devil  by  the  same  means, 
at  the  hands  of  God. 

§118. 

One  hundred  years  later  lived  St  Augustine, 
the  oracle  of  thirteen  centuries — apologist,  inter- 
preter of  Scripture,  theol<^ian. 


SOME  FEATURES  OF  TUE  FAITU.  213 


This  wonderful  theory  of  Gregory  of  Nyssa 
was  well  known  to  Augustine,  and  we  find  that  he 
evinced  no  great  hostility  to  it. 

St.  Augustine  expounded  the  matter  by  saying 
that  we  were  held  in  the  power  of  the  devil ;  that 
the  devil,  though  finding  nothing  worthy  of  death 
in  Cknstf  yet  neverthelew  slew  Him,  and  there- 
fore U  i$  certainlif  jtui  that  we  whom  he  held  as 
debtors  riiould  be  dismissed  free  by  believing  in 
Him  whom  the  devil  slew  without  any  debt 

So  are  we  jui^fied  in  the  blood  of  Christ 

§119. 

This,  or  this  slightly  varied  in  the  details,  is 
the  language  and  the  theology  of  the  Church's 
foremost  scholars,  with  hardly  an  audible  discord, 

not  only  until  the  time  of  Anselm,  but  until  the 
teaching  of  Anselm  was  digested  by  the  masses; 
and  this  we  must  set  as  not  less  than  a  hundred 
years  after  Anselm.  For  owing  to  the  absence  of 
modern  facilities  for  disseminatiufz  knowledge, 
this  must  have  been  a  process  of  the  shiwest  pos- 
sible character:  for  Anselnrs  was  iKJt  an  age  in 
which  the  heads  of  families  spent  their  evenings  in 
the  perusal  of  instructive  literature  of  any  kind, 
sacred  or  secular. 

Dr.  Dale  in  his  lecture  on  the  Atonement  has 
a  passage  itom  tlw  writings  of  St.  Bernard  of 


214  SOME  PSATITltBS  OF  TKE  FAITH. 

Clairvaux  (who  was  an  infant  two  years  old  whpii 
Anselm  was  made  Archbishop  of  Canterbury),  in 
which  St  Bernard  still  maintains  the  traditional 
view  in  violent  opposition  to  Abelard;  because 
Abelard,  while  admowledging  that  all  the  teach- 
ers of  the  Church  since  the  apostles'  time  agreed 
in  the  opinion  that  the  death  of  Christ  had  re- 
deemed us  from  the  power  of  the  devil,  yet  had  the 
courage  to  stand  a]  oof  and  to  hold  a  different 
opinion. 

The  passage  is  as  follows:  "The  Lord  said, 
I  will  save  thee  and  deliver  thee.  Fear  not.  Thou 
askest  from  what  power.  Thou  art  not  willing 
that  the  devil  should  have,  or  should  have  had 
power  over  man — nor  I,  I  confess;  but  neither 
thy  will  nor  mine  can  hinder  it. 

"If  thou  wilt  not  confess,  nor  say  it,  those 
who  have  been  redeemed  by  the  Lord,  those  whom 
He  has  redeemed  from  the  hand  of  the  enemy, 
know  it  and  say  it. 

"Thou  wouldst  not  deny  it  if  thou  wert  not 
still  in  the  enemy's  hand;  thou  canst  not  render 
thanks  with  the  redeemed,  thou  who  art  not  re- 
deoned." 

But  the  condition  in  which  this  subject  has 
been  left  by  the  early  fathers  and  their  successors 
through  the  ages,  only  proves  oondusively  that  it 


SOME  FKATUREH  OI>   i  HE  FAITU.  215 

was  never  a  burning  q\iestion  to  any  general  ex- 
tent; and  here  it  is  only  proper  to  remafk,  that 
the  reaBons  why  Christ  died,  and  how  our  eins  are 
foi^ven  by  His  death,  are  not  necessary  to  our 
belief  in  and  our  enjoying  the  entire  benefits  of 
His  "full,  perfect,  and  sufficient  sacrifice,  oblation, 
and  satisfaction  for  the  sins  of  the  whole  world." 

§  120. 

To  show  the  cautious  way  in  which  Anselm  in 
his  work  on  this  subject,  "Cur  Deus  Homo,"  pro- 
ceeds so  as  not  to  shock  popular  and  deep-rooted 
prejudices,  I  quote  his  openinj^  sentences,  in  which 
he  mentions  his  adoption  of  the  C'atechetical 
method  as  the  one  most  suited  to  his  purpose — a 
choice  which  a  modern  writer  on  the  subject  thinks 
skilful  as  relieving  the  Archbishop  from  urging, 
in  his  own  name,  the  objections  which  appeared 
to  him  to  be  fatal  to  the  traditional  theory,  that 
Christ  died  to  snatch  us  from  the  grip  of  Satan. 

"Often,"  says  St.  Anselm,  "both  by  word  of 
mouth,  and  by  letter,  have  I  been  eagerly  asked  to 
write  down  the  explanatory  arguments  with  which 
I  am  accustomed  to  answer  those  who  ask  about 
various  points  of  our  faith,  for  they  say  that  thqr 
enjoy  them,  and  think  them  conclusive.  .  .  . 
The  unbelieving  often  question  (deriding  Christ- 
ian simplicity  as  infatuated),  and  the  faithful 


216 


SOME  FKATUBXI  OW  THS  VAITH. 


wonder  in  their  own  hearts,  for  what  renon,  and 
by  what  necesaitiy  God  was  made  man,  and  by  Hig 
death,  as  we  believe  and  oonfeas,  gaire  His  life  to 
the  world,  since  He  might  have  done  this  by  an- 
other person,  whether  angelic  or  htonan;  or  by 
His  sole  will. 

'•On  this  point  not  the  learned  only,  but  also 
many  unlearned  persona  inquire  much,  and  ask 

tlio  reason  of  it. 

"  Therefore  since  many  desire  this  subject  to 
be  treated,  and  since  the  elucidation,  though  very 
difficult  to  carry  out,  is  intelligible  to  all  when 
completed,  and  attractive  on  account  of  its  useful- 
ness and  the  beauty  of  its  reasoning;  I  will  try 
(although  what  should  be  enough  has  been  said  by 
the  holy  fathers  on  the  subject)  to  show  forth  to 
tliose  who  are  seeking,  that  which  God  may  deign 
to  disclose  to  me. 

"And  since  question  and  answer  is  an  ea^  way 

of  explaining  things,  I  shall  make  one  of  my  peti- 
tioners my  interlocutor— Boso  shall  ask  and  An- 
selm  shall  answer  as  follows." 

Then  follow  twenty-five  chapters  of  the  first 
book  and  all  the  chapters  but  three,  of  the  conclud- 
ing portion  of  the  work,  before  the  following  cour- 
ageous and  enlightened  view  is  given  to  the  world : 

"I  think  I  have  in  some  measure  already  an- 


sons  FXATVBIS  OF  THB  FAITH. 


217 


swered  your  qucstiou,  although  a  better  than  my- 
self could  do  so  more  fully,  and  the  reason  and  eon- 
^uenoe  of  this  mystery  are  greater  and  more 
numerous  than  my  intellect  or  that  of  mortal  man 
is  able  to  grasp. 

''Still  it  is  plain  that  Qad  in  no  wise  needed  to 
do  that  which  we  have  mentioned;  immutable 
verity,  however,  so  required. 

"But  granting  that  what  that  man  did,  God  is 
said  to  have  done  (on  account  of  tlie  unity  of  per- 
son), yet  God  needed  not  to  have  come  down  from 
li'-aven  to  conquer  the  devil,  nor  to  act  againat  hira 
to  set  man  free  as  a  maker  of  justice ;  but  God  re- 
quired man  to  vanquish  the  devil,  in  order  that  he 
who  had  offended  God  by  sin,  by  righteousness 
might  make  reparation. 

"Inasmuch  as  to  the  devil  God  owed  nought 
save  punishment:  nor  did  man,  save  conquest,  that 
having  been  vanquished  by  the  devil,  he  might 
vanquish  him  in  turn;  but  whatsoever  was  re- 
quired of  man,  he  owed  to  God,  not  to  the  devil." 

§  121. 

But  the  old,  and,  until  Anselm's  time,  gener- 
ally received  theory  of  Christ's  paying  His  ransom 
to  the  devil,  died  hard;  if  we  can  be  sure  that  it 
has  at  last  been  utterly  and  everywhere  crushed 
out. 


218 


SOMS  VBATVBKB  OV  THX  TAITH. 


And  now  the  wny  is  olear  for  xm  to  deal  with 
the  great  snbjeet  aa  it  meeta  otmelves  in  this  ad- 
vanced age  of  the  life  of  ib»  Chnroh  of  God. 

§  122. 

We  have  seen  that  in  Adam's  fail,  more  tlian 
an  individual  catastrophe  was  brought  about 

Adam's  disobediraoe  in  the  garden  of  Eden 
produced  evils  so  wide  and  far-reaching,  that  they 
are  utterly  unparalleled  in  the  whole  history  of 
sin.  The  way  in  which  this  Eden-error  reaches 
even  to  us  of  to-day,  and  aflfocte  the  latest  cliiM 
bom  into  the  world  as  thoroughly  as  it  did  the 
immediate  offspring  of  Adam,  is,  as  has  Ixmu 
shown,  entirely  unaccountable  until  we  understand 
the  extraordinary  relationship  which  our  first  par- 
ent bears  to  the  race,  in  comparison  with  any  of 
his  progeny — our  ordinary  ance.  ors. 

Ancestry  is  the  stream,  at  whatever  point  in  its 
course  we  take  it,  looking  backwf  rds. 

Adam  was  the  fountain-head  of  the  »Lill  waters 
before  they  moved  an  inch  on  their  course. 

If  this  fountain-head  be  kept  pure,  all  is  safe 
from  at  least  overwhelming  disaster. 

Poison  this  momentous  spring,  and  life  is 
threatened  along  every  bank  from  the  source  to  the 
sea ;  or  in  other  words,  from  creation  to  eternity. 

The  saying,  "A  stream  cannot  rise  higher  than 


■OMB  PBATtmSS  OF  TBS  FAITH. 


21» 


its  source/'  holds  good,  too,  when  we  we  thinking 
of  humanity. 

We  may  here  change  the  figure  from  a  stream 
to  a  tree.  If  therefore  this  root  or  seed  be  poison- 
ous as  that  of  the  deadly  Upas-tree,  the  latest  and 
greenest  shoot  uf  the  bulky  growth  must  exhibit  the 
same  poisonous  nature  as  that  from  which  it 
sp^all^^  Adam's  sin  therefore,  producing  distor- 
tion of  nature  in  him,  produces  a  like  dist<)rtion  of 
nature  in  me;  and  my  mind  sees  the  connection 
between  us  clearly. 

Now  if  the  stream  of  humanity  cannot  rise 
higher  than  its  sinful  source,  purification  must 
come  from  a  (jiiarter  without  and  above  it. 

The  Scriptures  tell  us  that  when  this  parent 
root  of  our  race  took  the  poison  into  his  life,  God, 
while  looking  upon  the  sin,  mercifully  promised 
what  humanity  may  reverently  term  the  impossible 
— ''the  seed  of  the  woman  shall  bruise  the  serpent's 
head"  (<3en.  iii.  15).  No  «cplanation  of  the  mys- 
tery was  vouchsafed,  but  hope  lived.  From  that 
moment,  therefore,  there  were  suspended  before 
the  consciousnes.*  of  our  race,  three  tremendous 
moulding  facts;  namely,  mankind's  awful  plight: 
the  impossibility  of  self  righting:  and  the  cer- 
tainty, notwithstanding,  of  rescue ;  and,  as  we  have 
seen,  the  whole  system  of  J ewish  sacrifices  was  de- 


220      soiu  WMAtvmm  or  turn  faith. 

signed  by  Ood  to  keep  these  ^ree  great  facts  clear 
aud  nnobeourad  in  the  niindi  of  men,  like  thm; 
towering  monntain-pMb^  ever  preerat  <m  the  hot- 
icon  of  human  thought— aelf  effected  degradation, 
helpleameM.  and  ultimate  rescue.  Let  ua  now  at 
length  torn  onr  eyes  to  the  last  of  diese,  the  rescue. 

S  188. 

If  the  mind  found  di£Sculty  in  agreeing  to  the 
justice  of  our  being  affected  by,  and  punished  for, 
a  sin  committed  thousands  of  years  b^ore  we  were 
bom:  and  yet  if  on  proper  understanding  of  the 
extraordinary  circumstances  attending  that  distant 
sin,  every  charge  of  injustice  has  been  withdrawTi, 
shall  we  not  hope  that  a  similar  change  of  front 
may  he  brought  about  by  a  like  reverent  and  close 
study  of  the  matter,  in  the  judgment  of  those  who 
see  injustice  in  God's  acceptance  of  the  Sacriticc 
of  the  Cross  for  the  sins  of  the  world  ?  Or,  iu 
other  words  of  harsher  sound,  Qod's  pleasure  in 
the  sacrifice  of  the  innocent  for  and  instead  of  the 
guilty? 

There  is  no  doubt  that  this  has  been  a  rallying 
point  for  all  the  hostile  critics  of  Christianity.* 
They  take  secure  shelter  behind  their  impregnable 
position,  that  the  tribunal  which  accepts  the  death 
of  an  innocent  man  in  the  place  of  that  of  the 


*  Note  H. 


80MX  rSATUBM  OF  THK  FAITH. 


221 


culprit,  is  nnwofthy  of  respect ;  and  we  may  batten 
to  ecmoede  that  so  long  as  they  confine  themselves 
to  human  law  courts,  no  r^^t  reasoning  can  drive 
them  from  their  entrendmiMit 

But  these  critics  omnot  continue  to  ignore  the 
facts  that  they  are  dealing  with  a  subject  which  is 
larger  than  their  niodels ;  and  that  in  charging  God 
with  injustice  in  the  matter  of  the  Atonement,  they 
may  liave  run  on  the  same  rocks  here,  that  stranded 
tlicni  wlien  dechiiniing  against  the  monstrosity  of 
imagiuiiiii'  that  we  are  in  any  way  {-'onceriictl  with, 
(ir  affected  hy,  the  wrong-doing  of  another  person, 
awav  hack  in  the  dawn  of  time. 

In  the  case  of  Christ's  Atonement,  as  in  that 
of  Adam's  sin,  such  reasoners  have  altogether 
omitted  frcmi  their  consideration  of  the  subject 
(that  which  we  have  already  risked  the  charge  of 
tiresome  repetition  in  order  to  do  full  justice  to), 
the  extraordinary  and  altogether  unparalleled  rela- 
tionship home,  both  by  our  Lord  and  Adam,  to  the 
human  race. 

Neither  is  an  ordinary  great  figure  in  history. 

Neither  is,  like  every  other  mortal  whether 
distinguished  or  obscure,  a  mere  link  in  the  chain 
of  humanity. 

And  here  is  the  crux;  for  tuc  profound  anom- 
aly which  meets  us  in  both  cases,  accounts  for  the 


1 


10 


222  SOME  FSATUBKS  OF  THE  FAITH. 

facts,  equally  immutable,  that  Adam  sinned  and 
I  suffer ;  "Christ  died  and  I  live."  "Therefore  as 
by  the  offence  of  one,  judgment  came  upon  all  men 
to  condemnation,  even  so  by  the  righteousness  of 

one,  the  free  gift  came  upon  all  men  unto  justi- 
fication of  life.  For  as  by  one  man's  disobedience 
many  were  made  sinners,  so  by  the  obedien<%  of 
one  shall  many  be  made  righteous." 

§124. 

The  voice  of  Fatherhood  in  God,  uttered  in 
Eden,  and  promising  victory  to  the  seed  of  the 
vvonian,  meant  that  a  second  Adam  should  come  to 
earth;  that  He  should  take  the  first  Adam's 
chances,  now  lessened  and  all  clogged  by  sin ;  and 
should  vindicate  the  honor  of  the  Almighty,  and 
the  justness  of  His  requirements  of  man,  by  show- 
ing that  man's  highest  good  and  ripest  wisdom  lay 
in  following,  even  through  the  jaws  of  a  violent 
death,  the  will  of  his  Maker. 

The  voice  of  Fatherhood  in  Gk)d,  therefore, 
meant  sacrifice — the  voluntary  sacrifice  of  the  Son 
of  God — the  bruising  of  the  body  under  the  full 
weight  of  Adam's  sin;  while  the  soul  remained 
serene  in  adoring  loyalty  to  the  Father's  will ;  and 
this  Second  Adam,  Root  or  Fountain-IIead  of  the 
race,  should  re-beget  the  race  in  llis  own  Divine 


80ME  FGATUSEB  OF  THE  FAITH.  223 

image,  thus  restoring  to  man  all  that  he  had  lost 
by  the  fall 

§125. 

And  HOW  we  see  the  beauty  of  holiness,  the 
noble  righteousness  of  God,  referred  to  by  the 
prophet  Isaiah : 

''He  shall  grow  up  before  him  as  a  tender 
plant,  and  as  a  root  out  of  a  dry  ground :  He  hath 
no  form  nor  comeliness;  and  when  we  shall  see 
Him,  there  is  no  beauty  that  we  should  desire 
llim.  He  is  despised  and  rejected  of  men;  a  man 
of  sorrows,  and  acquainted  with  grief : 

''And  we  hid  as  it  were  our  faces  from  Him; 
lie  was  despised,  and  we  esteemed  Ilini  not. 

"Surely  He  hath  borne  our  griefs,  and  carried 
our  sorrows:  yet  we  did  esteem  Him  stricken, 
smitten  of  God,  and  afflicted.  But  He  was 
wounded  for  our  transgressions^  He  was  bruised 
for  our  iniquities:  the  chastisement  of  our  peace 
was  upon  Him;  and  with  His  stripes  we  are 
healed. 

"All  we  like  sheep  have  ^ne  astray ;  we  have 

turned  everyone  to  his  own  way ;  and  the  Lord  hath 
laid  on  Him  the  iniquity  of  us  all. 

"He  was  oppressed,  and  He  was  afflicted,  yet 
lie  opened  not  His  mouth:  He  is  brought  as  a 
lamb  to  the  slaughter,  and  as  a  sheep  before  her 


224  SOMK  FBATUBXS  OF  THE  FAITH. 

shearers  is  dumb,  so  He  openeth  not  His  mouth. 

"He  was  taken  from  prison  and  from  judg- 
ment: and  who  shall  declare  His  generation!  for 
He  was  r"t  oflF  out  of  the  land  of  the  living:  for 
the  transgression  of  my  people  was  He  stricken. 

"And  He  made  His  grave  with  the  wicke  i,  and 
with  the  rich  in  His  death ;  because  He  had  douo 
no  violence,  neither  was  any  deceit  in  His  mouth. 
Yet  it  pleased  the  Lord  to  bniise  Him;  He  hath 
put  Him  to  grief;  when  thou  shalt  make  His  soul 
an  offering  for  sin,  He  shall  see  His  seed,  He  shall 
prolong  His  days,  and  the  pleasure  of  the  Lord 
shall  prosper  in  His  hand.  He  shall  see  of  the 
travail  of  His  soul,  and  shall  be  satisfied : 

"By  His  knowledge  shall  my  righteous  servant 
justify  many;  for  He  shall  bear  their  iniquities. 

"Therefore  will  I  divide  Him  a  portion  with 
the  great,  and  He  shall  divide  the  spoil  with  the 
strong;  because  He  hath  poured  out  His  soul  unto 
death ;  and  He  was  uimibered  with  the  transgres- 
sors ;  and  He  bare  the  sin  of  many,  and  made  inter- 
cession for  the  transgressors." 

§126. 

Looking  down  from  heaven  upon  our  hopeless 
plight,  God,  the  Son  says,  "Lo  I  come,  to  do  Thy 
will,  O  God ;"  and  before  His  vision,  doubtless,  the 
sufferings  of  soul  and  body,  recorded  in  the  gMpels 


SOME  FEAT1TREH  OK  THE  KAITH. 


225 


as  iiK'ident  to  the  doing  of  that  will  under  the  new 
circ'unistanees  which  man's  sin  had  introduced, 
were  all  present:  the  rejection,  the  thanklcHsness, 
Gethsemane,  the  hiding  of  the  Father's  face,  and 
the  welcome,  violent  finish. 

This  work  of  reconciliation,  honoring  to  God 
and  friendly  to  man,  how  great  and  awful  was  the 
sacrifice  it  demanded ! 

God's  will,  the  Creator's  will,  is  the  creature's 
\mt  good. 

The  first  Adam  thought,  or  acted  as  if  he 
thought,  otherwise.  The  Second  Adam  pays  the 
glorious  honiufre  to  the  Almighty  of  choosing  His 
will  as  the  oiilij  possible  good,  no  matter  how 
loughly  clothed  it  might  be. 

If  wo  may  say  that  the  prospect  of  death  or 
dishonor  offers  no  real  choice  to  the  true  soldier; 
we  may  say  that,  to  Christ,  there  was  no  choice,  no 
choosing,  because  there  was  absolutely  no  alterna- 
tive for  Him.  God's  will  stood  for  llim  peerless 
and  alone. 

§127. 

The  sacrifice  of  Christ  to  the  righteousness  of 
God  is  this  voluntary  act  of  worship  to  God,  and 
of  rescue  to  mankind.  ''To  obey  is  better  than 
sacrifice,  and  to  hearken  than  the  fat  of  rams" 


226 


SOME  FEATUBES  OF  THE  FAITH. 


(I  Sam.  XV.  22).  "He  created  the  world  with 
power  but  restored  it  by  obedience,"  says  Hooker. 

It  shows  man  the  direction  and  path  where- 
in his  true  happiness  lies,  and  exhibits,  and  offers 
to  God  tie  honor  due  unto  His  name,  of  a  high, 
even  a  selfish  obedience  to  His  will ;  an  obedience, 
that  is,  which  has  as  mucli  good  for  the  creature 
enfolded  within  it,  as  it  has  honor  for  the  Creator. 

§  128. 

It  was  part  of  Adam's  awful  legacy  to  the  race, 
that  wrung  ideas  of  the  promised  Messiah  should 
etitrcne'.i  themselves  in  the  hearts  and  minds  of 
luen,  ;tn(l  tliat  as  the  fulness  of  time  approached 
for  the  fulfilment  of  tlie  great  Eden-promise,  men 
should  mature  themselves  in  their  bias  for  the 
rejection  of  Him  for  whom  they  waited. 

Looking  out  upon  the  mission  He  generously 
undertakes,  the  Second  Adam  sees  how  far  His 
path  of  pure  obedience  to  God  the  Father  must 
lead  Him  from  the  course  of  those  who  uphold  the 
standard  of  God  on  earth;  and  sees  also  the  ar- 
raignment and  condenmation  before  public  opin- 
ion, which  this  divergence  must  bring  to  those 
standard-bearers,  i.e.,  the  rulers  of  God's  Church 
en  earth;  and  seeing  this,  the  Saviour  sees  what 
perhaps  is  not  wholly  beyond  merely  human  vision 


SOMS  FEATUBE8  OF  THE  FAITH.  227 

— that  violence  and  death  lie  straight  before  Him 
in  His  chosen  path.* 

It  is  to  do  the  will  of  the  Father,  and  to  do  it 
in  the  face  of  all  this,  that  He  comes. 

§  129. 

We  cannot  think  that  the  bodily  bruising  of  the 
Lord  (awful  as  that  most  truly  was,  and  inevita- 
ble), was  anything  more  than  the  welcome  ending 
of  the  more  poignant  agony  of  the  Bedeemer  which 
reached  its  highest  in  the  hiding  of  the  Father's 
face. 

The  death  on  the  cross  is  the  record,  the  an- 
nouncement to  Heaven  and  earth,  and  to  hell,  of 
the  final  triumphing  obedience  of  the  Second 
Adam ;  the  full  complete  victory  of  Him  who  came 
to  do  what  Adam  failed  to  do,  and  to  undo  what 
Adam  did. 

""^hen  the  Bedeemer  cried,  *It  is  finished',  as 
He  hung  upon  the  cross,  the  veil  of  the  temple  was 
rent  in  twain  from  the  top  to  the  bottom ;  because 
thenceforward  the  centre  service  of  Sacrifice  per- 
taining to  the  old  dispensation  was  abolished. 
That  orfect,  that  satisfying  Sacrifice  was  now 
offered  up  as  an  odor  of  a  sweet  smell  well  pleasing 
to  God.  The  odor  of  this  offering  ascended  from 
the  sacred  heart  of  humanity ;  and  when  that  heart 


•  Not«  1. 


228 


SOME  FSATURSS  OF  THE  FAITH. 


hrcke  to  live  again  forevennore,  this  world  and  the 
prince  of  this  worid  were  overcome."* 

The  finality  of  this  utter  obedience  is  en- 
shrined for  our  unspiritnal  apprehension  in  the 
last  act  upon  the  cross — the  death.  "He  humbled 
Himself  and  became  obedient  unto  death,  even  the 
death  of  the  cross."  This  was  the  limit,  and  the 
Saviour  duly  reached  it.  The  mind  rightly 
enough  takes  the  erowTiing  pinnacle  of  this  match- 
less Sacrifice,  and  rivets  its  adoring  gaze  upon  that 
point 

g  130. 

The  gibe  recorded  in  the  gospels,  and  which 
seems  at  first  sight  to  have  a  disturbing  element 
of  fitness  in  it,  '*If  Thou  be  the  Son  of  God,  conio 
down  from  the  cross,"  is  discovered  to  be  the  weak- 
est of  cavils,  when  we  reflect  that  to  come  down 
from  the  cross  at  the  bidding  of  any  voice  that  is 
not  Gbd's  would  be  to  throw  down  His  commis- 
sion, to  abjure  the  plan  perfected  in  Heaven  and 
voluntarily  undertaken  for  the  salvation  of  man, 
and  to  choose  the  meanest  of  opposites  before  and 
instead  of  the  will  of  God  the  Father. 

The  gibe  is,  besides,  seen  to  be  dishonest — the 
echo  of  a  condition  of  soul  absolutely  hostile  to 
truth — when  we  remember  that  it  only  demands 

*MarteiiKB. 


SOKE  VEATUREH  OF  THE  FAITH. 


229 


a  new  miracle;  and  when  the  prospeet  that  an  ad- 
ditional miracle,  siich  as  this  now  retpiired,  would 
alone  do  what  scores  of  such  or  greater  Divine 
manifestations  had  failed  to  do,  is  wildly  irra- 
tional. N^o  pretence,  even,  of  sincerity  is  at- 
tempted. Triumphant]:  trcd  was  the  parent  of  it ; 
and  like  the  barking  of  dogs  at  an  advancing  army, 
no  halt  is  called  to  deal  with  the  matter. 

§131. 

The  advocate  for  humanity  in  this  great  con- 
troversy between  Creator  and  creature  might  uige 
the  plea  that  for  Adam  in  his  temptation,  God's 
conditions  were  too  severe,  were  impossible;  that 
the  winds  and  wav^  were  too  strong  for  his  frail 
bark,  and  so  he  inevitably  made  shipwreck.  But 
the  awful  wrestling  with  danger  and  difficulty  in 
tile  garden  of  Gethsemane,  the  dark  waters  that 
overflowed  and  engulfed  the  human  soul  of  the 
Redeemer,  producing  a  sweat  of  blood  from  His 
sacred  body,  failed  to  register  a  hair's  breadth 
deflection  from  the  inviolable  consciousness  of  the 
Second  Adam,  that  God's  will  is  always  best. 

The  Second  Adam  proved  that  it  was  possible 
as  it  was  profitable  in  every  light,  to  be  loyal  to 
the  Father's  will.  "O  My  Father,  if  it  be  possible, 
let  this  cup  pass  from  Me ;  nevertheless,  not  as  I 
will,  bat  as  Thou  wilt" 


230  SOME  FEATURES  OF  THE  FAITH. 

A  "Second  Adam"  veritably  "to  the  fight  and 
to  the  rescue  came and  so  Heaven  is  refreshed  hv 
the  sight  of  human  flesh  restored  to  the  image  iu 
which  it  was  created — the  image  of  God. 

§132. 

Our  Lord's  taking  three  of  His  chosen  oncr^ 
with  Him  into  tlie  Garden  of  Gethsemane,  when 
His  final  encounter  with  all  the  forces  arrayed 
against  "the  Saviour"  was  to  take  place,  is  sug- 
grative  of  more  than  the  commonplace  desire  for 
the  companionship  of  these  apostles,  or  of  the  mere 
force  of  habit,  from  having  had  these  disciples 
with  Him  on  at  least  two  other  exceptionally  im- 
portant occasions. 

These  were  the  best  that  earth  could  produce. 
Amongst  the  noblest  material  that  the  sons  of  men 
offered  for  pillarhood  in  that  imperishable  Society 
which  Omnipotence  framed  for  the  diffusion  of 
the  Saviour's  achieved  benefit  to  mankind,  these 
were  the  foremost  and  the  best. 

These,  then,  were  not  unfitted  to  represent  the 
most  finished  qualification  which  humanity  could 
boast,  for  entrance  on  that  great  struggle  which 
was  about  to  take  place  for  man's  rescue. 

But  the  struggle  was  engaged  in  without  them : 
their  largest  measure  was  taken  when  the  Saviour 
left  them  at  a  distance  behind  Him.  But  even  this 


SOME  FEATURES  OF  THE  KAITII.  231 

estimate — the  status  of  spectators  in  their  own  con- 
test, "Tarry  ye  here  and  watch," — was  of  too  gen- 
erous proportions;  for  the  event  proved  that  they 
were  not  even,  as  they  might  have  been,  conscious 
of  what  was  going  on. 

The  distance  therefore  between  humanity's 
"possible"  and  the  salvation  of  man,  is  symb<dized 
not  only  by  the  spaeo  which  lay  between  the  re- 
spective positions  of  our  Saviour  and  11  is  chosen 
followers,  at  the  moment  when  the  utter  and  eter- 
nal overthrow  of  the  powers  of  darkness  was  effect- 
ed; but  by  the  spiritual  condition,  as  compared 
with  Christ,  of  these  apostles  at  this  momentous 
time.  He  was  in  agony  (St  Luke  xxii.  44),  for 
the  crisis  evoked  it.  They  were  asleep,  for  their 
eyes  were  heavy.  A  pitiful  showing,  surely,  and 
thrice  repeated  without  any  betterment  Such  as 
it  was,  it  was  humanity's  best. 

When  our  Lord  and  Redeemer  took  with  Him 
into  the  garden  Peter  and  James  and  John,  are  we 
not  permitted  to  think  that  He  designed  to  unfold 
to  us  a  parable,  and  the  last  and  greatest  of  all  His 
parables  ?  Shall  gratitude  in  us  sell  its  birth-right, 
— perception — for  a  mass  of  pottage,  i.e.j  sleep? 

§133. 

The  righteousness,  because  the  possibility,  of 
God's  conditions  for  man  in  Adam,  is  vindicated. 


^OZ  SOME  FKATUBB8  OF  THB  FAITH. 

Obedienoe  in  the  Saviour  oonmmwd  obttrnotious, 
as  fire  does  fuel.  "Thy  wiU  be  done !"  is  the  last 
triumphant  echo  of  the  eooMct,  and  opens  the  way. 

Infinite  succor,  noblo  and  ennobling,  which 
man  has  still  if  he  will  use  them;  faculties  to  per- 
ceive and  understand,  and  in  some  measure  to  re- 
spond to,  teaches  him  where  and  how  he  now  stands 
before  his  Maker.  His  attitude  can  never  be  vain- 
glorious, for  his  dignity  is  borrowed.  Honest 
humility  and  gratitude  must  be  the  salient  features 
of  his  daily  life  and  religion. 

§  134. 

A  new  fountain-head  of  humanity  has  now 
been  established  from  which  shall  issue,  as  at  first, 
sons  and  daughters  bom  in  the  image  of  God. 
"As  in  Adam  all  die,  even  so  in  Christ  shall  all 
be  made  alive." 

The  ineflPable  interest  in  us  that  prompted 
this  mighty  friendship  and  sacrifice  for  us,  makes 
sure  that  the  benefits  of  the  victory  shall  reach  us. 

An  institution  framed  and  compacted  by  the 
same  Divine  Lord  that  redeemed  us,  and  whose 
object  it  is  to  carry  out  the  full  plan  of  this  rescue 
and  restoration,  is  set  up  on  earth. 

This  institution  is  the  womb  of  the  new  birth, 
the  bride  of  Christ,  "the  Church  of  the  living  God 
and  the  pillar  and  ground  of  the  truth." 


SOMK  FKATUMM  OV  TBK  VAITR.  S33 


Nobody  can  find  reasoning  fault  that  the  bono- 
Hfs  should  accrue  to  us  from  the  sacrifice  and 
achievement  of  the  Second  Adam,  when  the  niia- 
erv  and  sinfulneM,  consequent  upon  the  course  of 
the  first  Adam,  so  terribly  affect  us. 

If  the  transmission  of  Adam's  sin  is  as  right 
as  it  is  actual,  the  transmission  of  the  benefits  of 
Christ's  passion  is  as  real  as  it  is  right. 

By  generation  we  become  partakers  and  sharers 
of  Adam's  state :  Christ's  is  ours  by  regeneration. 

And  so  the  Atonement,  the  at-one-mcnt,  is 
effected.  God  and  man  arc  at  one  again.  Recon- 
ciliation has  been  brought  about  and  the  ransom 
paid,  in  the  high  sense  which  we  have  seen. 

The  Lamb  of  God  taketh  away  the  sins  of  the 
world.  God's  true  foi^^ness  reaches  us,  but 
there  is  holy  method  in  the  manner  which  demands 
our  attention. 

The  method  is  calculated  to  show  to  the  most 
unthinking,  at  once  the  enormity  of  the  charge 
that  lay  against  us  ( by  the  awful  cost  of  the  right- 
ing), and  the  nature  of  Him  with  whom  we  have 
to  do. 

§  135. 

It  now  remains  for  us  to  do  what  we  can  in 
word  and  deed ;  of  these  our  word  is  well  set  forth 
in  the  Communion  hymn: 


ECl 


234 


80MB  FXATVIIM  OV  THB  VAITH. 

"Look.  Father,  look  on  Hit  aaolBt«d  tact. 

And  only  look  on  m     touM  la  BiB : 
Look  not  on  our  mlraalnga  of  Tky  gVMt, 

Our  prayer  so  langald.  and  our  teitb  ao  dim: 
For  lo.  between  our  alM  »ai  tMr  nwMd, 

Wt  act  the  paaaioB  of  Tkf  Bum  o«r  LwA" 

Our  deed  it  to  do  what  we  can,  and  all  we  can. 
Knowing  from  what  and  how  we  have  been  deliv^ 
ered,  and  knowing,  too,  the  nnrtnre  due  to  the 

new  life  within  us,  we  are  to  seek  and  to  fnlly 

apply  the  means  of  grace  which  He  has  left  w  in 
His  Church,  the  two  natures— the  old  Adam  and 
the  new  Chri.c-life— strupfyling  the  while  against 
each  other;  our  failures  making  us,  like  stumbling 
children,  hold  more  firmly  to  the  protecting  hand 
that  goides  us. 

It  is  much  to  know,  now  that  the  road  has  Imth 
truly  pointed  out,  and  a  guide  supplied  us,  that 
when  we  have  made  the  best  of  our  way,  and 
reached  our  joume/s  end,  we  shall  not  find  the 
gates  of  our  Father's  house  any  longer  barred  and 
guarded  against  us,  and  a  flaming  sword  wielded 
to  drive  us  off  the  premises. 

Thus  the  Atonement  may  be  summed  up  before 
our  minds,  and  expressed  in  one  sentenco— God  the 
Son,  our  Judge  to  be,  endured  the  perudiy  of  our 

sins,  instead  of  inflicting  it. 

Note  :— Tn  a  rural  mission  a  couple  of  hours 
distant  from  Ottawa,  the  clergyman  in  charge  was 


HOME  FKATUBES  OF  TllK  FAlTli. 


•23;. 


invited  'mv  oe  one  belonging  to  the  household  tu 
go  and  see  a  man  who  had,  during  his  life,  made 
VI  ry  little  use  of  the  serviees  of  elergvnien,  as  he 
set  exceedingly  little  value  upon  them.  He  tiow 
bore  the  weight  of  ninety  years;  hut  when  in- 
terested, displayed  nn  energy  of  mind  that  was  not 
given  to  confusing  things,  or  arguing  at  all  irra- 
tionally from  his  standpoint. 

lie  was  a  remarkable  man,  as  the  clergyman 
soon  found  out  His  long  contemptuous  hostility 
to  the  Church  and  her  ministry,  and  his  well- 
known  refusal  to  he  |rat  into  a  passion  hy  having 
to  listen,  as  he  described  it,  to  their  defence  of  the 
indefensible,  made  this  visit  of  the  dei^yman  to 
him,  if  not  an  intrusion,  at  least  a  very  delicate 
matter.  This  aged  man  had  in  his  younger  days 
been  a  sailor  on  a  P.itish  man-of-war  which  was 
engaged  in  the  battle  of  Navarino.  This  subject 
offered  a  facile  introduction:  and  after  an  un- 
feigned interest  was  shown  in  his  lucid  account  of 
the  great  sea  fight,  the  subject  of  the  Christian's 
fight,  and  our  hopes  of  success  through  the  merits 
of  Christ,  were  referred  to. 

At  once  the  aged  man  seemed  to  become  young, 
alert,  combative.  He  charged  injustice  against 
God  for  making  man  tiie  imperfect  being  he  is. 
Wfar       make  him  right  to  start  with?   If  the 


236 


SOME  FEAT17SE8  OF  THE  FAITH. 


machine  were  properly  constructed,  the  work  done 
by  it  would  be  all  right.  But  how  can  we  look 
for  the  best  results  from  the  worst  and  most  ill- 
made  instrument  ? 

He  then  scathingly  illustrated  the  predicament 
of  the  race,  by  asking  if  he,  or  any  man,  should 
deserve  the  affection  of  his  children  or  the  approval 
of  his  neighbors,  if,  having  deliberately  made  a 
treacherous  pit  in  front  of  his  door,  he  were  to 
punish  his  children  for  falling  into  it  ? 

The  aged  objector  was  courteously  reminded 
that  the  imagery  he  employed  was  misleading. 
God  was,  without  controversy,  not  making  ma- 
chines when  lie  created  man. 

He  was  making  a  being  in  God's  own  imago, 
endowed  with  that  wondrous  gift — free  will — 
which  sets  him  as  far  from  the  condition  of  a  ma- 
chine as  the  east  is  from  the  west.  To  make  him 
an  automaton  which  could  not  choose  but  do  what 
it  was  constructed  to  do,  would  be  to  create  a  ma- 
chine: and  such,  if  deemed  worth  an  existence, 
ought  perhaps  to  be  as  faultless  as  possible  of  its 
kind. 

But  to  imagine  that  the  Ruler  of  the  universe 
could  mistake  the  mechanical  noise  of  such  a  thing 
for  praise,  or  its  work  for  worship  or  sonship,  ia  a 
thing  too  monstrously  unworthy  for  any  reverent 


80MB  FKATVBBS  OF  THE  FAITH. 


237 


or  sound  mind  to  entertain  for  a  moment  The 
man  visited  weighed  all  this,  and  seemed  to  have 
no  violent  objection  to  the  explanation  of  his  diffi- 
culty. 

He  then  addressed  himself  to  the  task  of  show- 
ing that  our  presentation  of  the  work  of  (-hrist 
in  the  salvation  of  mankind  is  dishonoring  to 
God,  who  might  otherwise  be  loved  and  served. 

"God,"  he  said,  "is  right  in  declaring  us  to  be 
sinners,  even  far  beyond  the  inevitable,  and  there- 
fore right  in  setting  down  the  measure  of  pnnish- 
iiient  due  to  our  wrong-doing;  but  the  clergy 
charge  God  with  a  more  heinous  crime  than  any 
which  men  have  conmiitted,  when  they  teach  that 
He  punished,  and  was  placated  by  punishing,  an 
innocent  man — ^the  one  only  innocent  man — for 
and  instead  of  the  guilty  multitude.  It  is  out- 
rageous, shocking,  fiendish :  I  cannot  bring  myself 
to  pray  to  this  God  of  yours,  nor  have  anything  to 
do  with  either  II  im  or  you,  so  long  as  you  demand 
that  I  shall  believe  this." 

The  clergyman,  aflPeeted  by  the  intense  earnest- 
ness of  this  strong  thinker,  and  the  consciousness 
that  a  long  life  had  Iw^en  boldly  regulated  in  too 
perfect  a  consistency  with  this  logic;  and  feeling, 
also,  the  solemn  responsibility  of  his  own  position, 
offered  up  a  rapid  i)ctition  for  the  aid  of  the  Holy 


238 


SOME  FEATUHES  OF  THE  FAITH. 


Spirit,  that  truth,  and  the  majestj  of  God,  mi^t 
not  suffer  at  his  hands;  and  that  he,  as  a  witness 
to  the  truth,  might  prove  more  than  a  "well  with- 
out water"  to  this  apparently  honest  reasoner. 

The  old  man  was  informed  that  the  great  mis- 
take made  by  all  those  who  urged  this  specious 
condemnation  of  the  punishment  of  the  innocent, 
instead  of  the  guilty,  was  that  they  saw  in  Jesus 
Christ  only  a  man :  and  so  long  as  we  see  in  Him 
no  more  than  this,  there  is  no  escape  for  us  from 
impalement  on  the  spear  *  '  its  of  all  wholesome 
sense  and  feeling.  Bi  church  of  God  calls 
such  a  doctrine  of  the  1  n'  'ner*B  nature,  heresy; 
and  has  long  ago  set  her  darkest  stigma  upon  it. 
She  does  not  teach  that  Christ  is  but  the  sublimost 
specimen  of  man.  Indeed  she  considers  this  the 
one  impossible  account  of  llim ;  for  lie  is  either 
God,  or  He  is  an  impostor.  He  claims  to  ho 
God,  and  His  claim  must  be  sustained ;  or  every 
worthy  feature  falls  from  Him.  There  is  nu 
middle  character  possible.  What  we  are  taught 
hy  the  Church,  and  what  we  believe,  is  that  Jesus 
Christ  is  "Qod  of  Grod,  Light  of  light,  very  God 
of  very  Gbd,  batten,  not  made,  being  of  one  sub- 
stance with  the  Father,  by  whom  all  things  were 
made :  Who  for  lu  men  and  for  our  salvation  came 
down  from  Heaven,  and  was  incarnate  by  the  Holy 


SOME  FKATUBSS  OF  THE  FAITU.  239 

Gho0t  of  the  Virgin  Mary,  and  was  made  man" ; — 
and  that  lis  mi|^ty  Personage,  thus  perfect  God 
and  perfect  Man,  was  crucified  also  for  va. 

The  following  illustration  was  then  offered: 
•'Suppose  you,  who  are  the  head  of  a  family,  have 
found  to  your  horror  that  your  children  have 
offended  you  in  the  tenderest  part  of  your  honor 
and  fatherhood.    They  have  wilfully  violated  a 
known  principle,  vital  to  your  continuance  to- 
gether, not  only  in  one  houae,  but  in  the  relation- 
ship of  father  and  children.    Their  rehellion 
makes  it  absolutely  necessary  for  you  to  act  judi- 
cially, and  either  punish  them  condignly  on  the 
spot,  or  banish  them  forever  frwn  your  sight  ;  as 
there  must  be  but  one  master  in  your  house.  You 
summon  the  offenders.    They  stand  there  before 
you  in  a  semi-circle.    You  lay  bare  to  them  the 
enormity  of  their  sin,  and  show  the  pimishinent 
justly  due  to  it,  and  by  every  conside'-ation.  a  pun- 
ishment which  it  is  obligatory  upon  you  to  a<liiiin- 
ister.    You  show  them  also,  dispassionately,  that 
nothing  actuates  you  but  loyalty  to  right  and  their 
highest  good,  and  that,  fa^r  and  all  as  you  are  to 
tbem,  the  swift  punishment  must  descwid. 

*Tou  notice  the  sullen  assent  they  are  forced 
to  give  to  what  you  say — an  assent  which  mi^,  for 
tlM  m<mieat,  disam  their  opp<«ition,  but  viM^ 


240 


BOMB  FSATUBSB  OF  THE  FAXTH. 


gives  the  poorest  hopes  of  the  full  return  of  their 
filial  love  and  duty  to  you. 

"Just  then  the  father's  heart  in  your  breast  in- 
spires you  with  a  design  which  shall  bring  about 
not  only  their  complete  acknowledgment  of  their 
dire  offence  against  the  holiest  law  written  in  our 
nature,  but  which  shall  give  you  back  the  hearts  of 
your  children. 

"You  do  a  wondrous  thing.  The  punishment 
falls,  indeed,  but  not  on  them.  You  bare  vonr 
own  arm  before  them,  and  upon  its  smooth,  un- 
offending surface  you  receive  the  cruel  bruising 
and  branding  which  should  have  fallen  upon  each 
of  them.* 

"Is  there  injustice  in  all  this  i  Is  it  monstrous, 
and  shoddng,  and  fiendidi,  in  you  to  take  this 
course  in  order  to  restore  to  you  and  to  their  better 

selves,  your  children  ? 

'^Is  this  punishment  of  the  innocent  for  and  in- 
stead of  the  guilty  reprehensible  {  In  short,  is  it 
not,  on  the  contrary,  as  full  of  wisdom  as  it  is  of 
the  loftiest  sacrifice;  since  it  secures  al)  that  the 
condign  punishment  of  each  could  secure — the 
safeguarding  of  what  is  due  to  a  father— and  also 
that  which  punishment  could  not  achieve,  namely, 

•This  punishment  Is  aH  enwrapt  in  the  obedience  of  the 
Second  Adam  uhl.h  triumphed  ftnally  In  thp  Cruclflslon.  The 
whole,  foreseen  by  God  the  Son,  is  Justly  termed  a  sacrifice. 


SOME  FEATrRER  OP  THE  FAITM. 


241 


the  throbbing,  self  {•ondcnining  love  of  tliat  father, 
in  the  bosom  of  eaeli  one  of  those  children  T 

The  aged  man's  face  now  wore  a  softened  look, 
and  his  eyes  snffused  as  he  replied  to  the  mission- 
ary: "There  is  no  injustice  in  that,  no  injustice 
in  that." 

§  186. 

"It  is  not,"  says  a  distinguished  layman  lately 
deceased,  ''by  any  innovation,  so  to  speak,  in  His 
scheme  of  government,  that  the  Ahuighty  brings 
about  this  great  and  glorious  result.  What  is  here 
enacted  on  a  gigantic  scale  in  the  kingdom  of  grace, 
only  repeats  a  phenomenon  with  which  w(!  are  per- 
fectly familiar  in  the  natural  and  social  order  of 
the  world,  where  the  good,  at  the  expense  of  pain 
endured  by  them  procure  benefits  f.-r  the  un- 
worthy. It  may  indeed  be  said  and  with  truth, 
that  the  good  men  of  wlu)m  we  speak,  are  but  par- 
tially good,  whereas  the  Lord  Christ  is  absolutely 
good.  True:  yet  the  analogy  is  just,  and  it  holds, 
even  if  we  state  no  more  than  that  the  better  suf- 
fer* for  the  worse"  (Gladstone). 

§  137. 

The  restoration  to  Eden  and  to  sonship  in  God 
which  the  great  achievement  of  Christ  effects,  is 

•  Note  J. 


242 


SOME  FEATUBES  OF  THE  FAITH. 


brou^t  home  to  us,  as  the  work  of  our  undoing 
was,  by  an  act  of  eating. 

Forty  centuries  of  teaching  through  the  sym- 
bolism of  sacrificial  feasts,  have  prepared  the  race 
for  partaking  of  "the  Lanih  of  God  tliat  taketh 
away  tlio  sins  of  the  world,"  and  for  understand- 
ing tlu>  import  of  the  words,  "Except  ye  eat  the 
fiesli  of  the  S(.n  of  Man  and  drink  His  blood,  ve 
have  no  life  in  von." 

Not  only  the  Church,  but  even  the  world  iit 
its  worst,  if  we  interpret  aright  its  discontent  with 
its  decked  out  sin,  sighs  with  relief  at  the  exchange 
of  the  forbidden  fniit  for  the  Supper  of  the  Lord. 

§  138. 

As  "all  the  ills  that  flesh  is  heir  to,"  are  to  he 
traced  to  the  act  of  eating  in  the  garden  of  Eden, 
so  our  feasting  on  the  Body  and  Blood  of  Christ, 
means  for  us  freedom  from  all  this  evil,  both  in 
the  present  world  and  in  that  to  which  we  are 
hurrying. 

The  achievement  of  Christ  is  not  meant  to 
stand  alone  a«  a  liistoric  fact.  It  is  meant  to  reach 
us.  It  was  to  be  no  mere  demonstration  of  spir- 
itual prowess  on  the  part  of  the  Redeemer.  It 
was  preeminently  a  rescue;  and  to  make  it  this,  it 
must  reach  its  object — the  human  soul. 

To  eat  and  drink,  is  within  the  reach  and  capa- 


SOME  FXATUBE8  OF  THE  FAITH.  243 

hility  of  each  of  us;  the  rest,  for  which  t|,is  holy 
Mystery  stands,  is  Iwyoiul  us.  To  cat,  and  to 
know  why,  on  what  authority,  and  w  itli  what  hope, 
we  eat;  and  knowing,  to  be  thankful— this  is  all 
our  humble  part.  For  in  the  Sacrament  of  the 
Body  and  Blood  of  Christ,  we  come  to  receive  a 
gift;  and  not  to  haiter,  nor  offer  any  exchange. 

It  is  not  a  little  to  know  this.  It  shows  and 
keeps  us  mindful  of  just  where  we  stand.  Our 
iiighcst  possihle  service  to  CJod  niid  ourselves  in 
this  great  matter,  is  r..  p„t  (.urselves  iu  an  attitude 
for  receiving  this  gracious  and  timely  hoon;  to 
come  to  the  distributing  point— tiie  altar-rails. 
This  is  the  kernel-truth. 

The  glory,  as  the  merit  of  it  (the  merit  that 
is  found  at  the  altar-rails  where  God  and  man  now 
inoet),  is  all  God's:  ours  the  honest,  thrilling  ac- 
knowledgment of  this  fact.  "  Lo,  between  our  sins 
and  their  reward,  we  set  the  passion  of  Thy  Son 
our  Lord." 

§  139. 

And  here  we  may  take  note  of  the  latent  Juda- 
ism that  inheres  in  us  all,  and  at  the  very  moment 
that  we  most  need  this  Divine  mercy,  religiously 

keeps  us  from  it. 

We  abstain  frou)  the  Holy  ( 'ommnnion  because 
we  are  twt  good  enough  fo  piuiake  of  it. 


244 


aOUr,  FSATCKKS  OF  THX  FAITH. 


We  have  learned  so  well  that  feeling— tlio 
inner  testimony  and  conviction  of  union  with  God 
—is  the  pith  of  Christianity,  that  we  recoil  in  dis- 
may when  we  look  within  ourselves  for  any  war- 
ranty, any  uplifting  of  our  hearts  in  a  confident 
way,  to  eat  and  drink  of  that  holy  food. 

Within  the  court  of  conscience — ^that  stern 
judge — and  with  memory'  in  the  box  testifying 
against  us,  we  wear  no  very  buoyant  air.  We 
rather  cling  to  the  shadow  of  merit  there  may  Im; 
in  our  refraining  from  presuming  thus  far  bcyon.j 
our  actual  deserts.  To  go  forward  and  receive  tli.« 
sacred  Elements  in  our  present  coiidition,  we  fed 
would  strain  all  our  native  sense  of  fitness,  and 
lay  us  open  to  the  weighty  arraignment  of  desecra- 
tion; and  so,  failing  all  countenance  from  within 
ourselves  (since  we  cannot  help  ourselves)  we  per- 
mit conscience  to  make  out  a  clear  case  against 
us,  and  we  anticipate  the  echo  of  the  sentence  to  be 
pronounced  upon  us,  as  guilty  on  all  the  counts  of 
the  indictment— a  judgment  to  which  we  are 
foiced  to  set  our  seal. 

And  this  conviction  carries  with  it,  as  a 
scarcely  questioned  consequence,  the  certainty  of 
our  unqualifiedness,  our  interior  unfitness  for  the 
reception  of  the  Holy  Communion. 

Now,  no  one  will  for  a  moment  deny  that  then? 


SOMK  FE.VTUBES  OF  THE  FAITH. 


245 


is  a  great  deal  of  naturalness,  and  wholesomeu^ 

of  sentiment  about  this  way  of  looking  at  ourselvea, 
when  brought  face  to  face  with  a  celebration  of  the 
Holy  Eucharist.  To  be  wanting  in  this  proper 
sense  of  our  vileness  in  the  jjresence  of  the  All 
Jloly.  would  argue  a  strange  and  iujpious  ef- 
frontery. 

The  inhibitory  ])ower  nianifisted  by  one  who 
thus  refrains  from  proceeding  to  the  reception  of 
the  Blessed  Sacrament,  from  a  feeling  that  to  do 
so  would  be  shocking  to  his  sense  of  the  reverence 
due  to  that  ordinance,  shows  such  a  person  to  be 
possessed  of  moral  perceptions  of  a  highly  cred- 
itable character,  whatever  question  may  be  raised 
as  to  the  accuracy  of  his  grasp  of  the  teaching  of 
Christ  in  the  matter. 

The  contrast  which  he  presents  to  the  inert 
Christian,  who  goes  forward  to  participate  only 
because  it  would  demand  too  much  energy  to  de- 
fend the  opposite  course,  wliieli  all  the  while  may 
be  felt  to  be  the  right  one,  is  the  not  unworthy 
contrast  of  a  strong  against  a  feeble  mind. 

While  beside  the  non-participant  from  any 
cause,  the  robber-pietist  who  aspires  to  the  praises 
of  sanctity  for  their  sweetness,  and  for  the  things 
desirable  to  which  he  may  maHe  them  instru- 
mental, is  a  shocking  spectacle,  of  whidi  let  us 


246  SOME  FEATURES  OF  THE  FAITH. 

hope  the  Church  of  God  in  our  oountry  has  few 

instances. 

And  \x't  notwithstanding  all  this,  we  must 
I>au8e  to  consider  whether  we  are  right  in  arriving 
at  our  conclusions  (if  n     in  regard  to  our  un 
worthiness,  at  least  as  concerns  our  meeting  tho 
apostolical  requirements  of  would-be  communi- 
cants), arrived  at  in  such  faithful  accord  with  what 
are,  after  all,  only  worldly  ideals.    For  is  not  this 
the  way  the  matter  would  be  weighed,  pro  and  can, 
for  IIS  in  any  court  of  justice  in  the  land?  And 
as  we  have  seen,  in  discussing  the  subject  of  Re- 
pentance, that  there  is  open  for  sinful  man  a  court 
of  appeal  even  from  the  noblest  canons  of  justice 
which  this  world  knows,  ay,  even  from  the  deliv- 
erances of  conscience  itself,  may  we  not  entertaii< 
the  suspicion,  that  in  the  presence  of  the  Uoh 
Communion  it  is  possible  that  we  are  in  so  alto- 
gether peerless  a  situation— a  situation  wherein 
we  contemplate  a  mighty  fact  which  shatters  into 
fragments  all  rules  of  regular  procedure,  and  all 
reasoning  adequate  to  ordinary  courses  of  events— 
that  it  may  be  quite  as  improper  for  us  to  recede 
as  to  advance  ? 

§  140. 

If  our  pulpits  were  transformed  from  the 
chancel  to  the  porch,  and  congregations  of  Christ- 


SOAIJC  FEATLttES  OF  THE  FAITH. 


247 


ian  worahippen  addresaed  as  they  come  out  of  our 
ciiui-ches,  the  priest-preacher  demanding  from  each 
intelligent  non-partaki  r  of  the  Holy  Conmmnion 
Ills  rcasc.ns  for  this  .silent  affront  to  \m  Creator 
iiiul  Rcdt'ciner  ( in  whom  hut  a  few  monuMits  before 
he  pnhlioly  (•(.iifossed  his  U'lief),  it  might  throw 
the  hunlcii  of  proof  on  tlic  proper  side. 

Ill  the  j)reseiit  iiistrueted  eonditioii  of  s<K'ietv 
in  Christian  lands,  the  Church  ought  perha[»s,  as 
much  as  she  can,  to  place  the  responsil)ility  where 
God  will  undoubtedly  place  it,  nanu  h,  upon  the 
Iieads  of  those  who  thus  refuse  His  Salvation. 

To  argue  that  one  is  not  good  enough — the 
commonest  of  all  excuses  and  defences,  and  one 
in  which  we  have  noticed  some  elements  of  merit— 
what  exactly  does  it  mean  ? 

The  first  thing  we  may  say  about  it,  is  that  to 
no  one  interrogated  at  the  churoh  door  as  to  his 
abstaining  from  this  highest  privilege  of  a  Christ- 
ian, and  who  adopts  this  as  his  reply,  does  this  bar 
present  itself  as  a  permanent,  irremediable  thing, 
a  thing  which  renders  hiui  one  of  a  hopeless, 
changeless  caste  amongst  those  who  profess  Christ- 
ianity. 

In  almost  every  case  we  may,  on  the  contrary, 
■ay  that  this  present  anworthiness  speaks  rather 
emphatically  of  periods,  both  in  the  past  and  in 


[  \ 


248  HOME  FEATUBXa  OF  THX  rAITH. 


the  future,  of  (to  hinuelf)  Mtuf8<£twy  woecki- 

Jf  we  ask  how  rhetM:  j  '^riinis  iu  p;  v. en 
alt:i'>!iHl  to,  we  uia,  aafoly  ext/*  i  t  to  b«  utonned 
thai  however  they  were  labored  up  <  luey  were 
experien<^  and  registered  in  * 

As  to  the  fnture  periods,  whose  advent  ii 
has  made  the  present  un^^KtislMtory  itoto  lo  jwh 
more  rattcmal  and  eai^  lo  hmr  thar  it  <^h«rwi^ 
would  be;  how,  w  may  u  the 
of  feeling  whidi  t  wm^  ,  ■ssm  to  be  secured  by 
any  agency  posseani^^  vmfe  ii^  ent  uiorit  thaa 
mere  distance  fi' m,  and  theref  '-^  forgetfi  ess  f, 
tlie  thiiij^s  that  n<  •  disipiiei  !i  lOn-coii  ir  ipft*  , 
and  whortc  forhid'  ij;  power  i  placed  in  i  lu- 
porarv  vibrating  «  a  ner^  ,  rather  than  m  rhe 
!  aturc  of  the  act  or  course  -If?  And  does  this 
>i>livii«n,  product  i  v  a,i  ch-like  hiding  of  our 
he^,  ai^e  l  :od  bliviou,  and  the  annihilation 
of  tbMe  now  disti  iixur  features  of  our  case,  all 
beeausp  «»ar  nwv  to  trouble  us? 

We  t^m)^  m  ope  that  this  is  so.  And 
thert  ^  must  a  ^wledge  that  we  find  our- 
selves rr  i  at  a  CTi  is  in  the  natural  progress 
•>f  mtr  reiii,  convictions. 

it         on  plank  sinks  under  us.    There  is 
nothis?     A-  in  sig^t,  but  a  thing  with  a  rather 


-tOMB  VKATUftK.^  OF  THE  FAITH.  ^40 

isavor     anie,  uud  tli     is,  tin  poaiible  offective 
I1CS8  of  w.-rka  of  «u/>cr('r  'jalioii 

Under  all  ordiuu  ,  circt     uiuce«  we  should 
b(>  impelled  to  give  this,  idea  an  unqualified  rejec- 
tion; but  the  pre^  u  c^ifeumstanoes  are  extra- 
ordinary, for  tke^       -«r».   Can  we  make  that 
argunmt  stand  up  i...     ^m^t,  even  to  our  own 
Mtitf action,  which  wi>      laaintain  that  the  dolin- 
qncnt  of  to-day  v  h  .      .^>?tconiings  are  so  keenly 
felt  by  him,  may  hope  to  w  ipe  nut  these  del)ts  hy  a 
not  merely  perfect  faithfulness  for  tlie  future,  hut 
hv  ii  faithfulness  (if  we  eaii  eoneelvc  tlie  word 
*i '.I-  used)  over  and  ahove  what  is  perfect  i  Cau 
we  find  it  within  ourselves  to  otfer,  even  to  our 
selves,  the  expressed  hope,  that  by  a  self-invented 
devotion  to  self-chosen  acts  of  spiritual  drudgery, 
by  a  forced  offering,  that  is,  of  loveless  pain,  we 
riiall  induce  God  to  cancel  the  deeds  of  wrong, 
whose  memory  now  forbids  our  receivinjj  the  holy 
Body  and  Blood  broken  and  shed  for  the  remission 
of  sins  ? 

Can  we  trust  ourselves  to  such  a  hope  as  this  ? 
§H1. 

In  running  away  from  the  notion  of  a  sinner, 
with  his  conscience-attested  guilt  fresh  upon  him, 
receiving  the  pardon  of  Gud  through  the  sacrifice 
of  Jesus  Christ,  do  we  not  clearly  foresee  the  im- 


250 


SOME  FEATUSSS  OF  THE  FAITH. 


possible  region  to  which  our  hurried  flight  will 
lead  us?  - 

For  if  we  refuse  the  Atonement  of  Christ,  we 
must  of  necessity  erect  ourselves  into  individual 
Saviours,  whose  capacity  for  atonement  by  the 
human  device  of  extra  labor  or  of  distasteful  labor, 
it  is  easier  for  us  to  believe  will  prevail  with  God; 
though  Ave  cannot,  as  one  has  said,  persuade  our- 
selves that  we  believe  we  please  God  more  by  eat 
ing  bitter  aloes  than  by  eating  honey. 

It  is  a  case  of  choosing  between  two  Saviours  

between  Christ,  and  ourselves ;  and  when  the  one 
is  God's  way,  and  certain ;  and  the  other  way  our 
own,  and  unwarranted;  is  it  not  madness  to  think 
that  there  is  really  a  choice  for  any  of  us  ? 

It  is,  however,  more  within  the  lines  of  proba- 
bility that  reasoning  does  not  usually  go  so  far 
as  this;  that  in  fact  with  the  many  it  stops  short 
with  that  species  of  physical  discord  that  is  pro- 
duced in  both  mind  and  body,  by  the  idea  of  the 
meeting  of  sinners— real  sinners,  whose  errors  are 
not  mere  rhetorical  things,  but  sullying  realities 
into  which  the  full-blooded  will  itself  has  entered 
— and  God  Almighty. 

To  have  heard  of  Jesus  Christ  means  to  know 
that  God  has  stretched  out  His  hand  in  mercy,  and 
in  mercy  of  the  most  merciful  kind. 


SOME  FEATUKES  OF  THE  FAITH.  251 

It  is  our  heads,  let  it  be  noted,  tlial  liave  to  do 
with  the  acceptance  of  this  mercy;  for  it  is  to  our 
heads  that  Christ  ever  appeals  in  all  His  teaching 
by  illustration  and  parable ;  and  yet  we  seem  here 
to  have  passed  the  settlement  of  the  whole  momen- 
tous matter  over  to  our  feelings,  with  the  implied 
agreement  that  their  dictum  shall  be  final  and  un- 
debatable. 

And  what  does  all  this  mean,  no  matter  liow 
mncli  we  are  impelled  to  it  by  the  superior  attrac- 
tiveness of  cordiality  in  religion  over  mere  intel- 
lectual assent:  what  does  it  mean  but  this — we  are 
ready  to  believe  and  trust  anything,  even  the  most 
fleeting,  changeable  thing  within  ourselves,  in  the 
way  of  assurance,  rather  than  the  word  of  God? 

Is  it  not  time  for  us  to  recognize  to  how  great 
an  extrat  our  feelings  have  been  permitted  to  rule 
us  in  this  sovereign  way;  and  that  it  is  upon  the 
promises  of  God  through  Jesus  Christ  that  all  our 
hopes  in  this  world  and  the  next  depend,  and  not  at 
all  upon  our  variable  bodily  sensations  ? 

§142. 

So,  then,  we  must  send  this  non-participant  of 
the  Holy  Communion  back  to  his  i)ew,  to  do  the 
only  due  and  proper  work  in  order  to  produce  fit- 
ness, namely,  to  think,  to  meditate  whether  he  will 
accept  (since  he  cannot  buy)  the  free  gift  of  God ; 


-O^  SOME  F£ATUBSS  OF  THE  VASTU. 

and  whether  his  acoeptanoe  shall  not  be  immediate, 
which  is  the  more  reverwit,  rather  than  delayed! 
For  of  all  the  certainties  that  nearly  affect  him, 
none  is  of  more  present  force,  than  that  he  will 

never  be  more  fit  than  he  is  now,  in  so  far  as  the 
eye  of  heaven  beholds  him ;  and  seriouH  minds  will 
not  pay  much  heed  to  any  other. 

§143. 

But  if  :ie  be  unfit  himself,  what  can  such  a 
non-rp-eiver  understand  to  be  the  case  of  those 
who  do  go  up  and  partake  of  this  Sacrament  ? 

Is  it  really  true  tJiat  they  are  all  satisfied  with 
their  fitness,  and  the  faultless  character  of  their 
preparation  ? 

It  may  be  that  many  a  man,  conceriicu  absorb- 
ini^y  with  himself  at  this  moment  and  who  cannot 
see  the  way  open  to  him  to  communicate,  lets  this 
summing  up  of  the  matter  take  from  his  mind  a 
quite  complete  assent  And  yet  nothing  could  be 
more  prepost(  rous,  than  that  these  dutiful  Christ- 
ian men  and  women  should  either  be  thought,  or 
believe  themselves  to  be  fit,  to  partake  of  the  Holy 
Communion  in  the  sense  that  they  may  be  fit  to  sit 
at  their  neighbor's  dinner  table. 

To  have  the  solemn  rite  in  which  is  embodied 
the  ineffable  pity  of  God  upon  ruined  lost  human- 
ity, made  the  place  for  displaying  spiritual  excel- 


SOME  FEATVims  OP  THE  FAITH.  253 

leiioei — a  parade  gronsd  for  those  tba«  are  wiwle, 
and         med  not  the  ^ymeiaii — eaa  tlm  be 
Christianv^  ?  Surely  if  these  is  one  i^MMe  6f  vm 
fitness,  more  than  another,  ealcnlated  t»  vdl^x 
unfit  ami  inhibit,  it  is  the  flMFiMms  «f 
imagining  ourselves  fit. 
This  will  not  do. 

And  now  the  mind  of  our  interrojgated  wor- 
shipper, roused  perhaps  by  this  check,  masf  be  led 
to  make  a  closer  survry  of  those  who  go  up  to  the 
altar-rails,  and,  in  consequence,  to  cliauge  his 
ideas;  but  knowing  how  strongly  the  human  heart 
entrenches  itself  here,  we  must  not  hastily,  and 
without  evidence,  understand  this  change  of  opin- 
ion as  effecting  more  for  our  parishioner  than  the 
subjective  condition  of  the  oonununioants,  while 
it  is  the  thinker  himself  we  wish  to  see  changed. 

For  amongst  those  who  decorously  kneel  to  re- 
ceive the  sacred  Elements,  does  he  not  see  a  man 
whom  he  hnows  to  be  not  only  guilty  of  conduct 
belying  the  claims  of  a  Christian,  bat  a  man  posi- 
tively dishonest,  and  even  now  clearly  within  the 
reach  of  the  law — a  man  who,  in  short,  if  he  had 
his  deserts  would  be  forced  into  his  proper  place 
behind  the  strong  bars  of  a  prison  ? 

That  such  a  man  should  presume  to  make  one 
of  that  company  and  to  receive  the  Sacrament,  is 


254  SOME  FEATURES  OF  THE  FAITU. 

a  shock  to  our  paridiioiier's  conception  of  true  re- 
ligion ;  and  behold :  a  new  access  of  self-commenda- 
tion for  his  own  decent  restraint,  is  thus  the  only 
result  of  a  comparison  of  courses  with  this  bold 
obtruder. 

Now  it  is  worth  while  to  notice  that  nothing 
can  well  go  farther  towards  demonstrating  that  the 
first  mentioned  notion  entertained  of  communi- 
cants, as  being  a  parade  of  very  good  people— the 
flower  of  the  flock,  and  sinners  only  by  courtesy- 
is  a  conception  very  generally  held,  than  does  the 
anger  of  our  tjrpical  parishioner,  at  the  fact  that 
one  certainly  known  io  be  a  sinner,  should  do  such 
violence  to  Divine  truth  as  to  act  upon  its  warranty 
and  make  himself  one  of  this  number.  "This  is 
a  true  saying,  and  worthy  of  all  men  to  be  received, 
that  Christ  Jesus  came  into  the  >vorld  to  save 
sinners." 

§  145. 

"In  the  primitive  Church  there  was  a  godly  dis- 
eiplino,  that  at  the  beginning  of  Lent  such  persons 
as  stood  convicted  of  notorious  sin  were  put  to 
open  penance,  and  punished  in  this  world,  that 
their  souls  might  be  saved  in  the  day  of  the  Lord ; 
and  that  others  admonished  by  their  example, 
might  be  the  more  afraid  to  offend. 


SOME  FKATUBE8  OF  THE  FAITH. 


255 


"Instead  whereof  (until  the  said  discipline 
may  be  restored  again,  which  is  much  to  be 
wished )  "*— What  have  we  got  ?    A  liberty  loving 
people,  chafing  under,  and  rejecting  this  action 
by  the  Church:  only  in  order  that  each  wan  may 
himself,  without  so  much  as  a  '•lettrc  ,lv  ctrhcf," 
be  jury,  judge,  and  jailer  t<>  his  brother.    And  the 
brother,  aware  of  the  existence  <.f  this  inercih'ss 
tribunal,  in  ninety-nine  ease  out  of  a  hundre.l 
protects  himself  from  its  rigors,  by  keeping  well 
out  of  its  reach  and  severely  apart  from  the  pro- 
cession to  the  throne  of  mercy.    Only  the  hun- 
dredth has  the  courage  to  run  the  gauntlet  and 
receive  that  mercy ! 

§146. 

But  what  of  this  black  sheep,  whose  actual  case 
(since  all  that  has  been  alleged  against  him  is  pos- 
sible), we  may  take  as  fairly  enough  stated  ? 

The  first  thing  to  be  said  of  the  nuitter  is,  of 
course,  ready  to  hand  in  the  words  of  our  Lord 
Himself:  "Judge  not  and  ye  shall  not  he  judged, 
for  with  what  judgment  ye  judge,  ye  shall  be 
judged." 

This  command  admits  of  no  dallying  with  the 
temptation  to  try,  sentence,  and  hang  a  brother 
sinner;  our  thorough  unfitness  for  which  offices, 

•  CoBUBtutloa  Serriee. 


256  SOME  FXATUKn  OF  THX  FAITH. 

the  dealings  of  our  Blessed  Lord  with  certain  per- 
scms  in  the  gospel  history,  strikingly  set  forth. 

If  that  maiden  who,  in  the  hall  of  the  high 
priest's  palace,  heard  a  suspected  follower  of 
Jesus  of  Nazareth,  with  blasphemous  vehemence 
deny  any  connection  or  sjTnpathy  with  Jesus,  had 
stood  by  on  the  morning  of  St.  Petor'«  resistless 
sermon  which  added  three  thousand  souls  to  the 
Church,  and  recognized  in  his  fervid  utterance  the 
same  voice  which  she  had  heard  raised  in  a  cow- 
ard's unhallowed  disavowal  of  his  Friend  and 
Master,  she  would,  not  unnaturally,  have  thought 
such  a  man  most  unfitted  for  the  preacher's  office, 
and  the  guardian  of  immortal  souls ;  and  in  think- 
ing so,  she  would  doubtless  be  followed  by  the  va^t 
majority  of  humanity,  and  especially  and  with 
keenest  aggressiveness  by  godless  Christians — a 
tendency  which  is  full  of  meaning. 

And  yet  the  Saviour  of  the  world  thought  dif- 
ferently, and  so  very  differently,  that  it  was  witli 
full  Divine  approval,  and  with  Divine  aid,  that 
St.  Peter  triumphed  so  gloriously  that  day. 

§147. 

No,  the  Church  of  Grod  is,  and  we  cannot 
too  failMuUy  remember  it,  not  a  parade  ground, 
hut  a  giant  hospital;  and  like  the  hospital — ^her 
own  hegotten  child — she  does  not  witUioId  her 


80MX  FBATURKB  OF  THE  FAITH.  257 


succor  until  the  magistrate's  "not  guilty"  gives 
her  permission  to  extend  it.  Jeras  Christ  our 
Saviour  is  the  Great  Physician,  and  we  all  know 
His  methods,  no  matter  how  had  our  memory  may 
eeem  to  he  at  times. 

§148. 

When  all  is  said  about  our  neighbor  that  can  be 
said,  it  means  this :  that  his  disease  is  merely  not 
ours;  hat  we  all  need  the  aid  which  the  Church  was 
Divinely  established  and  equipped  to  give  us,  that 
is,  to  administer.  How  irrational  of  us,  tlien, 
to  wait  until  we  completely  rc'('<>v(M-  and  until  our 
neighbor  recovers,  so  to  sj)eak,  In'ton'  we  consent 
to  occupy  and  let  him  occupy  a  cot  in  the  great 
ward:  "Judge  Not"! 

And  h  e  our  parishioner,  eliating  at  the  daring 
profanation  of  a  man  who  is  a  sinner  indeed,  tak- 
ing advantage  of  that  one  and  only  help  for  sin- 
ners, is  led  to  inquire  of  the  Bible  for  a  full  list 
of  the  denunciations  it  utters  against  this  palpable 
consecration. 

He  remembers  a  verse,  for  one  of  our  Prayer 
Book  exhortations*  at  Holy  Communion  gives  it 
considerable  prominence:  it  is  St.  Paul's  words 
to  the  Corinthian  converts,  "He  that  eateth  and 

•This  eihortatlOB  Is  omitted  from  the  AmerlcAD  Prayer 
Book. 


358 


SOME  PEATVBES  OF  THE  FAITH. 


drinketk  unworthily,  eateth  and  drinketh  damna- 
tion to  himself,  not  oonaidering  the  Lord's  body." 
This  one  passage  is  enough  for  his  purpose:  it 
soothes  his  mood  by  the  full  sanction  it  gives  to 
his  righteous  indignation. 

§149. 

It  would  be  u  matter  of  profound  und  pathetic 
interest  to  know  how  many  timid,  hungering  souls 
in  our  dinrches,  have  been  chained  to  their  seats 
by  that  one  text,  as  effectually  as  iron  links  could 
bind  them.  God,  in  His  infinite  mercy,  free 
them !  For  to  not  one  of  them,  it  may  safely  be 
said,  does  that  dread  warning  apply,  and,  rightly 
understood,  it  giv  !io  countenance  to  the  indigna- 
tion of  the  offendc  -  brother. 

The  circuinstaiK'es  under  which  the  stern  re- 
proof, of  which  it  is  a  portion,  was  delivered,  were 
exceptional  iu  the  extreme,  as  will  be  seen,  and  are 
never  likely  to  recur. 

§  150. 

But  Krst,  this  word  *'unw(»rthily,"  if  taken 
out  of  its  particular  context  her':  and  generally 
used  without  the  limitations  oi  that  context,  be- 
comes actually  prohibitive  of  all  human  participa- 
tion in  the  Holy  Communion ;  and  thus  would  do 
that  holy  Sacrament  more  injury  than  that  from 


SOMX  FKATUBKB  OF  THE  FAITH. 


259 


which  St  Paul  is  anxious  to  protect  it  at  the 
hands  of  unseasoned  disciples  in  Corinth :  for  who, 
as  has  been  said  above,  but  the  really  most  unfit, 
could  dare  to  think  himself  "worthy,"  in  the  souse 
of  the  word  entertained  by  those  whom  it  drives 
into  the  unequivocal  iinworthiness  of  turning  their 
httcka  on  their  Saviour,  and  refusing  the  only  help- 
fulness there  is  really  between  them  and  helH 
"I  came  not  to  call  the  righteous,  but  sinners  to 
repentance." 

"Worthily,"  as  the  word  hangs  before  the 
minds  of  those  who,  all  the  while  they  are  really 
hungering  and  thirsting  after  righteousness,  yet 
from  a  misguided  devoutness,  turn  away  from  the 
great  Sacrament  of  Redemption,  because  of  ♦he 
grating  presence  of  conscious  sin — what  is  ii  .et 
us  try  to  define  it,  and  set  it  down  in  black  and 
white,  that  we  may  know  its  every  feature,  and. 
above  all,  whether  every  feature  is  of  Christ's 
making. 

§151. 

Is  it  not  this?— A  miracle  in  the  realm  of 
mercy  is  required  to  reach  men  and  women,  who 
know  but  too  well  that  they  are  sinners— very 
fellows  of  the  man  qualified  for  prison— and 
through  faults,  perhaps  more  sullying  than  many 
of  which  the  law  takes  count.    A  miracle  is  neoes- 


260  801fX  FKATUMES  Of  TBM  VAITH. 

auy  to  reach  the  case  of  these;  but  that  that  mi- 
rade  has  not  remained  suspended  between  Heaven 
and  earth,  an  unwrought  and  therefore  unreal 
thing  is  the  announcement  which,  though  every 
chnroh  bell  reiterates  it,  is  still  in  the  heart  of  a 
Christian  land  a  practically  undiscovered  fact. 
By  many  it  may  be  believed  to  be  a  possible 
reality,  in  so  far  as  obliterating  the  sins  of  other 
people  goes;  but  as  it  positively  justifies  a  man's 
o^vn  sinful  soul,  before  the  God  whom  he  has 
offended,  it  is  believed  by  only  the  few, 

"For  when  we  were  yet  without  strength,  in 
due  time  (^hrist  died  for  the  ungodly."  "For 
scarcely  for  a  righteous  man  will  (uie  die,  yet  per- 
adventure  for  a  good  man  some  would  even  dare 
to  die.    But  God  oommendetii  His  love  toward 
us,  in  that  while  we  were  yet  sinners  Vhrht  died 
for  us"  (Romans  v.  6,  7,  8),    And  yet  hun.an 
ingenuity  (call  it  rather  unbelief)  makes  it  neces- 
sary, in  order  to  receive  this  amazing  settlement 
with  God  and  conscience,  thai  we  do  what  is  im- 
possible, namely,  either  make  our  sins  unreal,  or 
wipe  them  out  ourselves,  before  we  come  to  God. 
Belief  in  rhe  forgiveness  of  sins  that  are  real  sins, 
through  thi  .lood  of  Jesus  Christ,  with  the  Church 
as  God's  own  medium  for  extending  this  forgive- 
ness to  the  souls  of  men  and  women  (who  aro  not 


SOME  FKATURKH  OF  TUK  FAITH. 


261 


perhaps  all  conacioiut  that  they  are  hungering  for 
it) — this  ia  the  one  thing  tlie  jeaming  world  can- 
not bring,  as  its  only  legitimate  product,  to  the 
great  settlement.  The  most  it  can  <lo  is  to 
acknowledge  that,  personally,  it  is  not  of  tho 
"wortliy";  and  for  the  rest,  trust  to  a  drifting  pol- 
icy, and  a  vague  sense  of  the  general  mercifulness 
of  the  future. 

Therefore  those  who  partake  "worthily,"  are 
ihoae  -mho  have  done  with  sin ;  i.e.,  those  who  have 
in  some  way  throttled  it  before  presuming  to  come 
to  their  Saviour's  feet.  In  a  word,  those  who  have 
found  for  themselves  another  name  under  Heaven 
whereby  we  may  be  saved. 

Let  every  man,  whose  individuality  goes  to 
make  up  this  huge  bulk  of  honest  blunderers,  and 
who,  all  the  while  he  acknowledges  his  sins,  and 
honestly  desires  their  remission,  turns  from  his 
"hope  and  sure  relief,"  for  reasons  and  reasoning 
such  as  this,  demand  of  himself  as  he  walks  out  of 
church,  and  away  from  the  Body  given  and  the 
Blood  shed  for  the  remission  of  sins,  this  pertinent 
question :  Do  I  know  what  Chriatianity  imansf 

§152. 

We  only  speak  of  one  class  of  people,  and  our 
mistake  is  great  if  they  c  not  unquestiomibly  the 
major  portion  of  those  qualified  by  Confirmation 


36S       80MV  FXATumn  of  thb  faith. 

for  partaking  of  the  Holy  Communion,  namely, 
those  who  are  ill  at  ease  because  of  their  sinful- 
neM;  or  in  other  word*,  thoee  who  are  not  enjoying 
the  highest  and  tmeat  happiness  for  whidi  Ood 
has  given  them  eapadtj,  and  who  consequently 
yearn,  in  any  of  the  many  degrees  and  phnes  of 
yearning,  for  their  Heavenly  Father's  favor. 

These  are  they  to  whom  the  dread  words  of  the 
apostle  to  the  commnnicants  at  Corinth,  do  not 
apply. 

And  now  let  us  explain  the  circumstances  whicii 
called  foriL  these  words  and  rendered  them  suited 
to  only  one  occasion,  and  that,  thank  God,  buried 
deep  down  beneath  the  weight  of  eighteen  cen- 
turies and  more. 

§  168. 

In  the  early  ages  of  the  Church,  there  was, 
connected  with  the  Lord's  Sapper,  a  religious 
meal,  called  Agape,  or  Love-f^;  baeause  it 
was  a  liberal  collation  of  the  rich  to  feed  the  poor. 

"St.  Chrysostom  gives  this  account  of  it,  de- 
riving it  from  Apostolic  practice :  he  says,  the  first 
Christians  had  all  things  in  conmion,  as  we  read 
in  the  Acts  of  the  Apostles ;  and  when  that  ceased, 
as  it  did  in  the  apostles'  time,  this  came  in  its 
room,  as  an  efflux,  or  imitation  of  it.  For  though 
the  rich  did  not  make  all  their  substance  common, 


SOlfK  FKATVBKS  OF  THB  FAITH. 


263 


vet  upon  certain  days  appointed,  they  made  a 
common  table:  and  when  their  services  was  entled, 
and  they  had  all  coniniunicatcd  iu  the  holy  ^Mys- 
Unmf  they  all  met  at  a  common  feast;  the  rieli 
bringing  proTiii<»M,  and  the  poor,  and  those  who 
had  nothing,  being  invited,  they  all  feasted  in 

Dean  Alford  says:  "Die  ur.  -ient  Christians 
parkjck  of  the  Snpper  of  the  L  ji-d,  not  before  this 
feast,  as  Chrysostom  H&i  i  but  during  and  after 
it,  as  shown  by  the  institution,  by  the  custom  of 
the  Passover,  by  the  context  here  (I.  Cor.  xi.  20), 
and  by  the  remnant  of  the  ancient  custom  and  its 
abuse  until  forbidden  by  the  Council  of  Carthage. 
These  Love- feasts  were  commonly  held  in  the 
church  for  the  first  three  centuries,  as  we  learn 
from  Bingham,  who  says  that  such  abuses  were 
sometimes  committed  in  them  that  the  Council  of 
Laodioea,  not  long  after,  made  a  law  against  hav- 
ing them  in  the  (^urdi,  forbidding  any  to  eat,  or 
spread  tables  in  the  house  of  Qod,  or  the 
ehnreh.  

'3nt  the  custom  was  too  inveterate  to  be 
rooted  out  at  once ;  and,  therefore,  we  find  by  St. 
Austin's  (St  Augustine's)  answer  to  Fanstns  the 

•  BtBfbnii'a  Amtttmitiet  of  the  ChrUtkm  Chmreh,  Vk.  XV., 
TiL  e. 


204  SOME  FEATURES  OF  THE  FAITH. 

Manichec,  that  they  were  still  kept  in  the  church 
{circ.  400  A.  D.) ;  for  whereas  Faustus  objected 
two  things  against  them:  (1)  That  they  were  but 
the  spawn  of  the  Gentile  banquets,  turned  into 
Christian  feasts;  and  (2)  That  the  Catholics  were 
used  to  make  themselves  drunk  in  them  in  the  Me- 
morials of  Hob  martyrs ;  St.  Auatin  rejects  the  firat 
chai^  as  a  mere  calumny,  telling  him,  'that  the 
end  of  their  agape  was  only  to  feed  the  poor  with 
flesh,  or  the  fruits  of  the  earth;'  but  the  second 
charge  he  owns  in  part  as  true,  that  the  people 
still  held  these  feasts  in  the  church,  and  that  some 
excess  was  committed  in  them." 

St.  Ambrose  at  Milan  prohibited  all  kinds  of 
feasting  in  the  church.  In  France  it  was  pro- 
hibited by  the  second  Council  of  Orleans,  541. 

Yet  for  all  this  there  were  some  remains  of  it 
in  the  seventh  century,  when  the  Council  of 
Tnillo  was  obliged  to  reinforce  the  canon  of  La- 
odicea  against  feasting  in  the  churoh  under  pain 
of  excommunication.* 

§154. 

This  outlines  the  history  in  the  Churoh 
throughout  the  world,  of  this  religious  meal  in  con- 
nection with  the  Lord's  Supper. 

The  Holy  Spirit,  animating  and  guiding  the 


•  8w  nU  itUkm,  Bk.  XV. 


80MK  FKATUBK8  OV  THK  FAITH. 


265 


Church,  led  her,  early  in  her  career,  to  cut  the 
agape  clean  off  from  the  Holy  Communion;  and, 
though  St  Paul  says,  "Is  any  hungry  among  you, 
let  him  eat  at  home,"  she  has  ever  since  wished  her 
children  to  preclude  all  possibility  of  unbecom- 
ingness,  by  reverently  partaking  of  this  holy  food 
before  any  other. 

It  was  this  religious  meal,  then,  in  connection 
with  which  the  abuses  arose  which  called  for  the 
apostle's  sharp  rebuke  and  warning.  The  Holy 
Communion  was  celebrated  during  or  after  it. 

The  history  of  this  custom  of  the  early  Christ- 
ians shows  that  it  was  smirched  by  excess  every- 
where, from  Lyons  to  Jerusalem.  But  the  fulmi- 
nation  which  the  Agape  in  its  lowest  and  worst 
abasement  called  forth,  is  surely  obsolete  now, 
when  the  possibility  of  such  abuses  has  been  eradi- 
cated from  the  Church  for  a  millennium  or  more. 

1 155. 

But  it  may  be  said  that  a  partic  iih.r  case,  oven 
though  it  may  never  be  likely  recur,  may,  in 
things  Divine,  call  forth  an  auth..ritativc  doliver- 
ance  on  the  general  action  of  the  law,  as  it  not  ua- 
frequently  does  in  human  issues, 

St.  Paul,  in  his  pronouncement  upon  this  Mi* 
ter,  may  therefore  not  unnaturally  rise,  as  olir 
Loid  often  does  in  His  teaching,  from  the  lettif 


266 


BOMS  7SATUBK8  OF  THK  FAITH. 


to  Hie  spirit  of  that  "miwortliinefis"  in  partici- 
pants of  the  Holy  Eucharist,  whidi  means  their 
damnation. 

Bnt  with  regard  to  this  position,  there  are  two 
pertinent  observations  to  be  made:  (1)  St  Paul's 
own  words  or  actions  must  be  his  interpreters  here, 

as  nobody  may  dare  to  take  the  liberty  of  deciding 
this  point,  but  the  apostle  himself;  and  (2)  if  St. 
Paul's  subsequent  words  and  actions  testify  that 
he  has  here  left  the  region  of  Corinthian  mis- 
demeanor, and  uses  the  words  "worthily"  and  "un- 
worthily" in  a  general  way,  leaving  ordinary, 
wholesome,  human  consciousness  to  be  the  judge  of 
its  own  worthiness  or  unworthiness  to  eat  and 
Mnk  of  the  Body  and  Blood  of  the  Lord ;  then,  as 
t^tmij  remarked  above,  tibe  aposde  has  used  his 
gnat  a^hority  to  cut  off  Christ  our  Saviour  abso- 
hrtely  from  the  race ;  for  no  man  living  may  dare 
to  advance  to  the  reception  of  the  Holy  Eucharist. 

The  remission  of  sins,  for  the  efFocting  of 
which  that  Blood  was  shod  and  tluit  Body  broken, 
must  therefore  wait  till  some  power,  not  Christ's, 
obliterates  these  sins,  before  Christ  remits  or  for- 
gives them. 

But  what  testimony  do  St.  Paul's  subsequent 
or  other  words  and  actions  bear  in  the  matter  ? 
The  fact  as  will  appear,  is  indisputably  clear,  that 


SOMB  FBATUBES  OF  THB  FAITH. 


267 


St.  Paul,  in  the  First  Epistle  to  the  CorinthMM, 
was  busy  with  the  lofty  tadt  proper  and  peculiar  to 
the  founder  of  an  apoatoUc  Chmeh,  namely,  the 
setting  up  of  the  standards  of  m  the  wm- 
munity. 

He  was  strivi^  to  establish  in  the  Hellenic 
mind  an  ordinary,  present-day,  Christian,  public 
opinion.    The  sin  with  which  the  apostle  was  dcal- 
iag,  and  which  evokes  his  condemnation  here,  was 
unlike  the  sins  which  keep  tender  consciences  away 
from  the  Holy  Communion  nowadays,  in  that  (1) 
it  was  not,  by  anybody,  thought  to  be  sin;  and  (2) 
it  was  committed  after  the  Churdi  had  assembled, 
md  during  the  public  wordiip  itself.    This  was 
how  and  whew  the  daxnnMion  was  sw*  a  real  pos- 
siUlity. 

§15«. 

The  individual  sinfulness  whidi  each  of  these 
esrly  disciples  brought  to  the  Holy  Communion, 
as  Ae  eoB^on  of  his  soul  in  the  sight  of  God,  St. 
Paul  does  not  once  mention,  or  refer  to  in  any  way 
in  owmection  with  the  Holy  Eucharist. 

It  was  distinctly  a  matter  of  the  conception  aiul 
administration  of  the  ordiiutnces.  as  we  may  see, 
by  setting  together  the  second  and  the  seventeenth 
and  some  following  verses  of  the  eleventh  chapter 
of  this  epistle  (I.  Cor.) :  "Now  I  praise  you, 


268 


SOME  FBATCBES  OF  TH«  FAITH. 


brethpen,  that  you  remember  me  in  aU  things  and 
keep  the  ordinances  as  I  delivered  them  to  joa" 
(verse  2).    "Now  in  this,  that  I  declare  mito yon 
I  praise  jou  not,  that  ye  come  together  not  for  th^ 

better,  but  for  the  worse  When  ye 

come  together  therefore  into  one  place,  this  is  not 
to  eat  the  Lord's  Supper,  for  in  eating  everyone 
taketh  before  other  his  own  supper,  and  one  is 
hungry  and  another  is  drunken." 

§167. 

The  whole  thing  is  made  clear  by  a  referenco 
to^the  times,  wherein  the  perilous  likeness  which 
this  now  long  abandoned  meal  bore  to  the  temple 
oilgies  (at  least  in  the  way  the  victualing  was  done 
and  some  other  particulars)  made  restraint  by  men 
who  had  never  known  either  the  meaning  of  re- 
straint, or  the  immorality  of  neglecting  it,  ahnost 
an  impossibility. 

The  glimpse  of  a  temple  feast  which  we  get 
from  Socrates,  whose  clean  outline  does  not  in- 
clude the  nnspoakablo  excesses  of  cvorv  kind  that 
befouled  it,  makes  us  think  at  once  of  the  Church 
m  Corinth  in  the  year  of  the  .epistle,  A.  T).  57. 

Socrates  observed  that  of  those  who  came 
to  the  feast,  some  brought  but  little  meat;  while 
others  brought  a  large  quantity,  used  to  order 


SOME  Fmtmmm  of  ths 


Urn  waiter  either  to  m«  tie  leut  dish  b*f«re  the 
company,  or  to  diM^b^  to  eaih  a  por^  <rf  k. 
Those  therefore  who  brou^t  mir^  wme  wthimoJ^ 

both  to  not  partake,  like  the  rfmt,  of  wkm  mm  set 
equally  before  all,  and  also  to  not  reei^oeate  the 

courtesy  with  their  own  victuals.  Th.'v  there- 
fore were  obliged  to  set  their  f<x)d  akt.  before  the 
company,  and  thus  no  one  had  nior..  than  those 
who  brought  W;  a  device  winch  rnrU-.l  rhos., 
who  were  given  to  extravagant  outlar  f..r  their 
delicaeiea  (Xsn.  J/«m.  Bk .  i i i .  1 4 ) . 

We  have  now  to  fill  in  thi^  iui<.bjc«fi.,natl,l,. 
outline  vnA  aomtOang  «i  the  br%  it'  pas^^-ss.-.J, 
and  for  wlaefc  Cor&i^  was  Mtoriont :  to  ik»  which, 
we  mm  rmmMAm  ««f  4«r  ^rgtai^  to^y  owe* 
all  itg  dtiKidea  to  AtC^bw^. 

^  whole  hette  Msmm  Empine  wan  .Mrt- 
iu»*ed  with  viee,  and  ismm  nothing  in  any  way 
approaching  to  the  momiity  whidi  now  wl»le- 
8omely  leavens  public  a^timent. 

Throughout  this  world  in  St.  Paul's  time 
Greece  was  proverbial  for  its  jicentiousnesa  and 
debauchery,  while,  vvitliiii  Greece  itseir.  ('..rinth 
was  infamous  as  the  focns  of  these  pPK-livities. 
The  temple  of  Venus— the  riflie.f  aii.l  ni.wf 
sumptuous  the  world  anywh(-re  enried  t-.  tLat 
foddess,  and  which  housed  over  a  tuousajid  priest- 


270  SOICS  FXATUBKS  OF  THE  FAITH. 


eases  of  loose  character — ^was  the  centre  and  in- 
spiration of  Corinthian  social  life. 

Unbridled  profligate  not  only  reared  its  crest 
unchallenged  in  Corinth,  but  reared  it,  to  be 
crowned  with  the  highest  kind  of  religious  conse- 
cration. 

The  apostle's  own  picture  of  heathen  corrup- 
tion, which  he  gives  us  in  the  first  chapter  of  the 
epistle  to  the  Romans,  was  drawn  in  Corinth,  and 
as  to  time,  something  less  than  a  year  after  his 
writing  this  first  letter  to  the  Corinthian  Christ- 
ians, wherein  the  visit  is  promised. 

S  158. 

This  was  the  saterial,  then,  on  which  St.  Paul 
had  to  stamp  Oiristian  idbals,  and  out  of  wfaidi 
he  was  to  make  saints. 

M  the  tinw  of  receiving  tMs  ^istle  (I.  Cor.) 
the  omgregation  at  Corinth  had  had  but  five  short 
years  of  Christianity.  Eighteen  months  of  this, 
St.  Paul  spent  with  them:  first  laboring  to  collect 
them  together  after  his  original  congregation  of 
alien  .Tews  had  turned  from  him,  and  then  instruct- 
ing liiem  as  he  thought  wisest.  The  rest  of  the 
time,  except  during  short,  unrecorded,  but  probable 
visits,  they  were  in  the  hands  of  teachers  who 
sought  to  undermine  St.  Paul's  inflmnoe ;  a  mishap 


SOME  FBATURXS  OP  THE  FAITH.  271 

to  them  which  must  have  greatly  hindered  any 
deepening  of  impressions  distinctly  Christian. 

Even  the  great  apostle's  own  teaching  must 
necessarily  have  been,  for  the  most  part,  positive 
Christian  doctrine,  preached  from  the  constant  text 
of  the  apo8tle8--"Chri8t  and  the  Kesurrection 
as  no  such  men  as  they  were  could  be  held  together 
by  the  uninviting  prospect  of  a  gaping  vacuum 
produced  by  abandoning  sins  that  were  felt  to  be 
no  sins. 

The  nature  of  the  seed  which  the  apostle  would 
sow  must  have  been  well  demooftrated  to  them 
before  they  undertook  the  weeding  process ;  so  that 

the  decalogue  could  not  hare  been  put  in  the  van. 

Thus,  in  St.  raul's  absence,  the  rival  teachei^ 
being  present,  and  the  tremendous  pressure  of 
environment  all  doing  their  work,  it  is  not  won- 
derful if  the  Corinthian  Christians  carried  some- 
thk^  of  their  ingrained  IcmpU-of-Love  deport- 
»©•!  mto  their  new  feast  of  love. 

^  Pa^  warm  theci  that  to  thus  sully  the 
inmtain  ftself  of  o«r  eew  Ufe^ »  an  awful  desecra- 
tim. 

They  have  a^i»e«%  tota%  misapprehended 
the  nature  and  meani^  of  ^  Holy  Euch»ist; 
and  so,  with  forbearance  amazing  to  us,  St.  ¥ml 
once  mare  recapitulates  tke  details  of  the  "institu- 


272  80MB  PEATUU8  OF  TH«  FAITH. 

tion"  of  the  Sacnuuent,  his  purpose  being  to  put 
them  in  the  way  of  administering  it  properly,  and 
winds  up  big  treatment  of  this  rabject  amongst  the 
several  big  letter  contain^  with  minatoiy  language, 
none  too  strong,  we  should  think,  under  the  eir- 
cumgtanceg. 

§  159, 

Jf  this  lioly  ordinance  had  been  administered 
in  ( 'orintli,  as  it  is  cvorywliere  administered  to-day 
in  the  apostolic  Churd.,  there  would  have  been 
no  minatory  jnissagc '^  -oi.ucctctl  with  this  august 
subject  in  the  "pisth-  to  the  Corinthians;  and  yet 
bow  m^m  our  suppositious  parishioiu'r  have  felt, 
had  ke  been  present  to  see  those  seasoned  Corinth- 
ians gmmg  up  to  the  Holy  Commimion  ? 

Can  we  now  put  in  this  class  of  sinners  

the  class  the  apostle  has  in  mind  when  he  utters 
those  warning  words— for  instance,  the  mother  ^ 
a  family,  who,  anxious  about  herself  and  lier  chil- 
dren, about  the  ways  and  means  of  life,  and  op- 
pressed by  a  sense  of  her  consequent  forgetfttlness 
of  her  (hiry  to  God  from  whoiu  ;ill  good  thin^ 
around  iis  are  ^.  nt.  ,  t  r-ally  ready  to  draw  near 
and  cast  her  hni  i.  n  at  her  Lord's  fwt,  but  is  with- 
held by  li.e  c  -nsei'Mtsii.  ss  o*^  soiac  b-  etting  sin  

an  irritj'  ie  temper,  p^rhrns-  an.l  ]  nv  her  many 
wrifiy  datie^  have  prevented  her  cw  Tying  out  a 


SOME  F£ATUBKe  OF  THE  FAITH.  273 

due  course  of  preparation— a  preparation  in  which 
it  is  just  possible  we  plawf      much  confidence? 

§  160. 

In  another  part  of  tho  congregation,  there  is 
a  joung  person  who  has,  through  tlse  preceding 
week,  made  self-examination  and  special  devotions 
instrumental  in  producing  a  satisfactory  frame  of 
mind  in  which  to  communicate.  But  that  very 
morning,  or  it  may  be  in  th«  church  itself,  a  flood 
of  unholy  thoughts  has  forced  its  way  into  the 
mind,  and  drowned  righteous  resolution  in  the  fear 
that  too  much  of  self  is  framed  into  those  thoughts ; 
M'hile  the  fact  is  not  remembered  that  temptations 
—unholy  thoughts — entered  into  the  mind  of 
Christ  Himself,  and  that  not  the  entering  in,  but 
the  harboring  and  cherishing  of  these,  "defile  the 
man." 

Can  we,  with  any  approach  to  ecjuity,  class 
such  cases  as  these  in  the  same  category  with  the 
indeoeucies  of  the  Corinthian  Christians,  whom  the 
^twtle  warns  against  unworthy  partaking  of  the 
Holy  C(«unttnion  ? 

§  161. 

But  may  not  we  of  to-day  honestly  believe 
what  we  have  taken  for  granted,  that  both  the  ideal 
and  the  execution  of  a  celebration  of  the  Lord's 
Sttpper  in  oar  dinrches,  are  as  free  as  possible 


274 


80MS  FEATVSn  OF  TH«  FAITH. 


from  anything  like  this  ancient  deaecration ;  and 
that  if  it  is  Btill  possible,  here  as  everywhere,  to 
•poil  a  good  thing  by  overdoing  it,  there  remains 
nothing  to  be  added  in  the  way  of  reverent  observ- 
anoef 

Is  it  not  juat  poeaible,  now  that  the  idea  haa 
boon  suggested,  that  our  faults  in  thig  matter  to- 
day  lie  in  this  opposite  direction:  that  of  an  over- 

wronfrht  conception  of  the  subject;  and  that  by 
tins  conception,  we  go  far  towards  making  St  Paul 
ail  nrch  offender  against  the  i)rwlaniation  of  the 
«uviour,  -Whoso  shall  offend  ,..,(.  of  these  little 
ones  which  iK^lieve  in  Me,  ir  w.-rc  In-tter  for  him 
that  a  millstone  were  hanged  about  his  noc  k,  and 
that  he  were  drowned  in  the  depth  of  the  sea"  ?* 

•  "If  It  were  not  bo  (that  BiiM  of  haman  frailty  are  no  bar 

n^^?n  H  bat  Communion  In  general.  «ince 

no  man  live,  without  8„,i   Inflrmltlea;  and  If  he  were  not  to 

commnmcatlnK.  and  n.  v.r  .,„m   .t  the  Lord" 
taWa.  which  were  at  onoe  to  destn.y  the  very     dinance  Itaelf 

LT^nl\A'  n  "i""  "'"■''"•"y  '""^  '^"'y  prepared 

f        "  "  '""f  'n  these  later  agMTlS 

OTeratralnlng   he  point,  haw  done  this  great  dis^erT     ^  « 

from  the  h..|y  ordinat  e  uti(].  r  pretence  of  areatep  i^-!--^* 
.t:  by  wh.oh  means  U  has  - Jetlme/h^rS^JJ^iT'^"  ^ 
perhaps  haye  been  the  best  prepared  to  r^eTt.  Sve  S  niS 


liOMB  KSATUUU  OV  THM  FAITH. 


275 


Tbe  Chrisdaii  does  not  swing  like  a  penduiuin 
•cross  the  <^i«nBS  of  diflksulty  which  yawn  before 
him  in  his  oonne,  but  may  be  said  more  truly  to 
cross  them  on  a  plank--and  that  plank  is  of  the 

Saviour's  placing. 

We  cannot  shut  our  eyes  and  trust  to  inward 
feeling  to  guide  us;  but  must  keep  our  heads 
steady,  and  know  wherein  we  trust. 

Danger  which  is  seen  on  the  one  side  is  not 
eliminated  from  the  situation  by  tli rowing  our 
weight  heavily  in  the  opposite  direct  ion. 

The  case  in  hand  is  one  of  these  situations. 
On  the  one  siue  we  have  the  revolting  Corinthian 
banquet  instead  of,  or  at  least  mixed  up  with,  the 
Holy  Eucharist;  on  the  other  side,  the  equally 
perilous  offence  just  quoted  in  the  words  of  our 
Lord.  Between  the  two  is  tliere  not  room  for  the 
feet  of  those  who  trust  the  mercy  of  which  assur- 
ance is  given  them  by  their  Saviour  ? 

The  bride  of  Christ— the  Church— re-echoes 
the  policy  of  her  Lord,  '"a  bruiseo  reed  shall"  she 
"not  break,"  "smoking  flax  shall"  she  "not 
quench,"  for  she  transacts  in  His  Divine  Name, 
and  by  His  Spirit 

§  163. 

But  there  can  be  no  doubt  that  the  enormous 


(AMI  wirf  80  mr  OMRT  Naw  a) 


276  SOMK  FEATUBBS  OF  THK  FAITH. 

pile  of  learned  controversial  works  which  this  holy 
theme  has  occasioned,  and  the  existence  round 
about  us  in  the  world  of  the  mighty  sections  of 
Christianity  standing  each  aloof  from  the  others, 
as  living  monuments  of  this  conflict  of  opinions, 
have  rnxuk  to  do  with  the  small  extent  to  which  the 
Holy  EtKsharist  is  partaken  of. 

All  this  human  war,  to  establish  exactly  how 
man  receives  that  "peace  of  Ood  which  pasaeth 
understanding"  shows  forth  one  good  thing  at 
least  (and  the  showing  pitifully  illustrates  a  thing 
we  have  glanced  at  in  passing — the  limits  of  our 
resourcefulness  in  true  merit),  namely,  the  minds 
of  men  have  been,  and  continue  to  be,  profoundly 
occupied  with  the  words  and  deeds  of  our  Lord  and 
Saviour  Jesus  Christ. 

The  sentiments  of  Hooker  are  so  nobly  perti- 
nent here,  that  I  shall  make  no  apology  for  esteem- 
ing them  worthy  to  be  transcribed  at  some  length, 
and  thus  put  in  the  forefront  of  the  treatment  of 
this  part  of  our  subject : 

"These  things  considered  (that  the  fathers  only 
held  a  mystical  communion), how  should  that  miml 
which  loving  truth,  and  seeking  comfort  out  of  holy 
mysteries  hath  not  perhaps  the  leisure,  perhaps  not 
the  wit  nor  capacity  to  tread  out  so  endless  mazes, 
as  the  intricate  disputes  of  this  cause  have  let  men 


SOME  FEATURES  OK  THE  FAITH. 


277 


into— how  should  a  virtuously  disposed  mind  hot- 
ter resolve  with  itself  than  thus  ?  Variety  of  judg. 
ments  and  opinions  argueth  ohscurity  in  those 
things  whereabout  they  differ. 

"But  that  which  all  parts  rcci  ivo  for  truth, 
that  which  everyone  having  sifted  is  by  no  one 
denied  or  doubted  of,  must  needs  be  matter  of 
infallible  certainty.    Whereas  therefore,  there  are 
but  three  expositions  made  of  'This  is  My  Body : 
Ifif,  first— thh  is  in  itself  before  participation 
really  and  truly  the  natural  substance  of  My  Body, 
by  reason  of  the  co-existence  which  My  omnipo- 
tent Body  hath  with  the  sanctified  element  of 
bread— which  is  the  Lutheran  interpretation  ;  the 
second,  this  is  itself  and  before  participation  the 
very  true  and  natural  substance  of  My  Body,  by 
force  of  that  Deity  which  with  the  words  of  conse- 
cration abolisheth  the  substance  of  bread,  and  sul>- 
stitutcth  in  the  place  thereof  .My  Body,  which  is 
the  Popish  construction;  and  last:  this  hallowed 
food  through  concurrence  of  divine  power  is  in 
verity  and  truth,  unto  faithful  receivers,  instru- 
njontally  a  cause  of  that  mystical  participation, 
whereby  as  1  make  myself  wholly  theirs,  so  1  give 
them  in  hand  an  actual  possession  of  all  such 
saving  grace  as  My  sacrificed  Body  can  yield,  and 
aa  their  souls  do  presently  need,  this  is  to  them 


278  BOMB  FEATUBES  OF  THK  FAITH. 

and  in  them  My  Body;  of  these  three  rehearsed 
interpretations  the  last  hath  in  it  nothing  but  what 
the  rest  do  all  approve  and  a<^owledge  to  be 
most  true,  nothing  but  that  which  the  words  of 
Christ  are  on  all  sides  confessed  to  enforce,  nothing 
but  that  which  the  Church  of  God  hath  always 
thought  necessary,  nothing  but  that  which  alone  is 
sufficient  for  every  Christian  man  to  believe  con- 
cerning the  use  and  force  of  this  sacrament,  finally 
nothing  but  that  wherewith  the  writings  of  all 
antiquity  are  consonant,  and  all  Christian  <»nfe8- 

sions  agreeable  He  which  hath  said 

of  the  one  sacrament  (Baptism)  "Wash  and  be 
clean,"  hath  said  concerning  the  other  likewise, 
*eat  and  live.' 

"If  therefore  without  any  such  particular  and 
solemn  warrant  as  this  is,  that  poor  distressed 
woman  coming  unto  Christ  for  health,  could  so 
constantly  resolve  herself,  'May  I  but  touch  the 
skirt  of  His  garment  I  shall  be  whole  (Matt.  ix. 
21),  what  moveth  us  to  argue  of  the  manner  how 
life  should  come  by  bread,  our  duty  being  here 
but  to  take  what  is  offered,  and  most  assuredly  to 
rest  persuaded  of  this — that  can  we  but  eat  we 
are  safe? 

"When  I  beheld  with  mine  eyes  aeme  small 
and  scarce  discernible  grain  or  seed  whereof  nature 


SOME  FKATUBE8  OK  THE  FAITH.  279 


maketh  promise  that  a  tree  shall  come,  and  when 
afterwards  of  that  tree  any  skilful  artificer  undcr- 
taketh  to  frame  some  exquisite  and  curiuua  work, 
I  look  for  the  event,  I  move  no  question  about  per- 
formance either  of  the  one  or  of  the  other. 

"Shall  I  simply  credit  nature  in  things  natural, 
shall  I  in  things  artificial  rely  myself  on  art,  never 
offering  to  make  doubt,  and  in  that  which  is  above 
both  art  and  nature,  refuse  to  believe  the  Author 
of  both,  except  He  acquaint  me  with  His  ways,  and 
lay  the  secret  of  His  skill  before  me  ?   Where  God 
Himself  doth  speak,  those  things  which  either  for 
height  and  sublimity  of  matter,  or  else  for  secrecy 
of  perfomance,  we  are  not  able  to  reach  unto, 
as  we  may  be  ignorant  without  danger,  so  it  can  bo 
no  disgrace  to  confess  we  are  ignorant.  Such 
as  love  piety  will  as  much  as  iu  them  lieth  know 
all  things  that  God  commandetli,  but  especially 
the  duties  of  service  which  they  owe  to  God.  As 
for  His  dark  and  hidden  works,  they  prefer  as  be- 
cometh  them,  in  such  cases,  simplicity  of  faith, 
before  that  knowledge,  which,  curiously  sifting 
what  it  should  adore,  and  disputing  too  boldly  of 
that  which  the  wit  of  man  cannot  search,  chilleth 
for  the  most  part  all  warmth  of  zeal,  and  briageth 
soundness  of  belief  many  times  into  great  hazard. 
"Let  it  therefore  be  sufficient  for  me,  presentr 


280  80ME  FEAVUSK8  OF  TH£  FAITH. 

ing  myself  at  the  Lord's  table,  to  know  what  there 
I  receive  from  Him,  without  searching  or  enquir- 
ing of  the  manner  how  Christ  performeth  His 
pr(»mise;  let  disputes  and  questions — enemies  to 
piety,  abatements  of  true  devotion,  and  hitherto  in 
this  cause  but  over  patiently  heard — ^let  them  take 
their  rest;  let  curious  and  sharp-witted  men  beat 
their  heads  about  what  questions  themselves  will, 
the  very  letter  of  the  word  of  Christ  giveth  plain 
security  that  these  mysteries  do  as  nails  fasten 
us  to  His  very  Cross,  that  by  them  wc  draw  out, 
as  touching  efficacy,  force  and  virtue,  even  the 
blood  of  Ilis  gored  side ;  in  the  wounds  of  our  Re- 
deemer we  there  dip  our  tongues,  we  are  dyed  red 
both  within  and  without,  our  himger  is  satisfied 
and  our  thirst  f orevor  quenched ;  they  are  things 
wonderful  which  he  feeleth,  great  which  he  seeth, 
and  unheard  of  which  he  uttereth,  whose  soul  is 
possessed  of  this  Paschal  Lamb,  and  made  joyful 
in  the  strength  of  this  new  wine ;  this  bread  hath 
in  it  more  than  the  substance  whicli  our  eyes  be- 
hold, this  cup,  hallowed  with  solemn  benediction, 
availeth  to  the  endless  life  and  welfare  both  of  soul 
and  body,  in  that  it  serveth  as  well  for  a  medicine 
to  heal  our  infirmities  and  purge  our  sins,  as  for 
a  sacrifice  of  thanksgiving ;  with  touching  it  sancti- 
fieth,  it  enlighteneth  with  belief,  it  truly  conform- 


SOME  KKATURES  OF  THE  FAITH. 


281 


eth  U8  unto  image  of  Jesus  Christ ;  what  tliese 
elements  are  in  themselves  it  skilleth  n«»t.  it  is 
enough  that  to  me  which  take  them  they  are  the 
body  and  blood  of  Christ,  His  promise  in  witness 
hereof  sufficeth,  His  word  He  knoweth  which  way 
to  accomplish;  why  should  any  cogitation  possess 
the  mind  of  a  faithful  communicant  but  this :  O  my 
God  Thou  art  true,  O  my  soul  thou  art  happy  ?"* 

§164. 

Hooker,  in  this  lofty  passage,  confines  the 
teaching  on  the  Lord's  Supper  to  the  three  great 
schoofe— the  Lutheran,  the  Roman,  and  the  An- 
glican. 

His  design,  to  count  the  points  of  union,  rather 
than  to  emphasize  the  ditfemnces  amongst  Vhrisi- 
ians,  is  characteristic.  But  whatever  the  possibil- 
ities for  this  were  in  Hooker's  day  and  country, 
we  Canadians  of  to-day  know  that  we  cannot  for 
a  moment  exclude  from  the  divisions  of  Christen- 
dom, a  fourth  school. 

The  teaching  of  Zwinglius  is  so  deeply  en- 
trenched in  Canadian  Christianity  that  if  we  are 
to  take  actuality  of  practical  belief,  rather  than 
some  shadings  of  opinion— all  however  of  the  one 
color— we  must  at  once  set  down  the  general  belief 
of  all  our  separated  brethren  of  the  sects,  as  neither 

Pomp.  Bk.  v..  Chap.  67,  sec.  12. 


y 


282  HOME  F£ATUB£8  OF  THS  FAITH. 

JRoman,  nor  Lnthenui,  nor  Anglican — ^bnt  Zwing- 
lian. 

And  yet,  for  the  pnrpoees  of  oonvenient,  oogent 
illnstntion,  it  is  extremely  desirable  that  we 
■honld  reduce  th^  to  three  great  divisions. 

How  shall  we  do  this  ? 

Let  US  first  secure  a  plain  stat^ent  of  each  of 
the  four  beliefs,  and  then  see  what  two  will, 
through  the  courtesy  of  the  reader,  best  go  under 
one  head. 

The  beliefs  are:  (1)  Transubstantiation.  (2) 
Consubstantiation,  (3) The  Beal  Spiritual  Pres- 
ence, (4)  The  denial  of  any  special  presence  al- 
together. 

Transubstantiation  is  the  doctrine  of  the 
Church  of  Rome.  As  stated  by  the  school- 
authors  and  other  more  subtle  reasoners  among 
them,  it  means  that  in  the  Eucharist,  after  the 
words  of  consecration,  the  whole  substance  of  the 
bread  is  converted  into  the  substance  of  the  Body 
of  Christ,  and  the  substance  of  the  wine  into  the 
substance  of  His  Blood ;  so  that  the  bread  and  wine 
no  longer  remain,  but  the  Body  and  Blood  of 
Christ  are  substituted  in  their  places.  This,  how- 
ever, is  said  to  be  true  only  of  the  substance,  not 
of  the  accidents.    The  accidents  (sudi  as  color. 


80MK  FEATURES  OF  THE  FAITH. 


28S 


shape,  tube,  smell,  CMisistence,  etc.)  all  remain 
nndumged. 

The  subBtance,  which  is  interior  to,  and  lu.t 
necessarily  dependent  on,  those  external  accident^*, 
is  that  which  is  converted. 

Yet  we  are  not  to  call  it  a  mere  spiritual 
change  (though  some  of  their  writ^-rs  have  allowed 
even  this),  but  the  change  is  a  real  and  miraculous 
conversion  of  the  substance  of  the  bread  and  wine 
into  the  very  body  of  Christ  which  was  bom  of  the 
Blessed  Virgin  and  cruciiied  on  Calvary. 

Consubstantiation  is  considered  to  be  the  doc- 
trine of  Luther  and  the  Lutherans.  It  differs 
from  Transubstantiation  in  that  it  does  not  imply 
a  change  in  the  substance  of  the  elements. 

Those  who  hold  this  doctrine  teach  that  the 
bread  remains  bread,  and  the  wine  remains  wine; 
but  that  with  and  by  means  of  the  consecrated 
elements  the  tme  natural  body  and  blood  of  Christ 
are  communicated  to  the  recipient. 

The  doctrine  of  a  Real,  Spiritual  Presence  is 
the  Anglican  doctrine,  and  was  more  •  less  the 
doctrine  of  Calvin  and  of  many  foreign  reformers. 

It  teaches  that  (^hrist  is  really  received  by 
faithful  communicants  in  the  Lord's  Supper:  but 
that  there  is  no  gross  or  carnal,  but  only  a  spiritual 


284  ttOMK  F£ATUBK8  OV  TUK  FAITU. 

and  Heavenly  presence  there,  not  the  less  real, 
however,  for  being  spiritual. 

It  teaches  therefore  that  the  bread  and  wiae 
are  received  naturally  :  but  the  Body  .ad  Blood  of 
Christ  are  received  spiritually.  The  result  of 
which  doctrine  is  this — it  is  bread,  and  it  is 
Christ's  Bodv.  It  is  bread  in  substance,  (  hrist  in 
the  Sacrament :  and  Christ  is  as  really  given  to  all 
that  are  truly  disposed,  as  the  symbols  are:  each 
as  they  can;  Christ  as  Christ  can  be  given;  the 
bread  and  wine  as  they  can ;  and  to  the  same  real 
purpoem  to  which  they  were  designed ;  and  Christ 
does  as  really  nourish  and  sanctify  the  soul,  as 
the  elements  of  the  body. 

The  fourth  opinion  is  that  of  Zwinj  lius,  wlio 
taught  that  the  Eucharist  is  a  bare  commemoration 
01  the  death  of  Christ :  and  that  the  bread  and  wine 
are  mere  symbols  and  tokens  to  remind  us  of  His 
Body  and  Blood.* 

§  165. 

Of  these  four  beliefs  it  will  be  seen  that  the 
first  and  the  second  hold  that  the  actual,  literal 
interpretation  of  the  words,  ''This  is  My  Body," 
must  be  maintained,  and  thus  that  the  communi- 
cant must  receive  the  very  Body  and  iJlood,  flesh 


*  These  definltlona.  Id  order  to  arold  controversy,  are  taken 
from  Bltbop  Harold  Browne  on  tbe  Thirty-Nine  Articles. 


HOME  FEATUBE8  OF  THE  FAITH. 

and  bone,  of  the  crucified  Redeemer  in  the  Holy 
Encharitt— the  one  changing  the  substance  .if 
bread  and  wine  into  the  sacred  Flesh  and  Hlood : 
the  other  giving  the  sacred  Body  and  HU)od,  in, 
with,  and  under,  onlinary  bread  and  wine. 

These  two  beliefs,  of  Transubstantiation,  and 
ronsubstantiation,\ve  may  therefore  most  litly  join 
inider  the  one  heading  of  the  more  familiar  Traw- 
substantiation ;  and  otherwise  omit  from  our  fu^ 
ther  consideration  the  doctrine  of  Consubstantia- 
tion:  not  indeed  from  any  arrogant  disrespect  for 
the  great  and  learned  body  which  holds  that  reput- 
able belief,  but  because  the  number  of  these  Christ- 
ians in  Canada  is  not  large. 

§  166. 

We  shall  thus  have  to  deal  with  exa(  tly  three 
great  divisions  of  Christianity,  and  their  three  re- 
spective conceptions  of  the  meaning  (»f  the  Sav- 
iour's words,  "This  ^s  My  Body:"  namely,  that 
which  maintains  the  carnal,  that  which  maintains 
the  spiritual,  and  that  which  maintains  the  nega- 
tive interpretation  of  the  Divine  words. 

Every  communicant  of  the  Church  of  England, 
as  he  walks  up  the  aisle  of  his  church  to  receive 
the  Holy  Communion,  knows  that  these  three  con- 
ceptions of  the  Lord's  Supper  are  held,  each  by 


886 


80M£  FMATVUU  OF  TUS  VAITU. 


humet^  God-fearing  Canadian  hn^ban,  wbo  an 
ewTj  whit  as  enlightened  as  hinuelf. 

The  Romanist  believes  that  the  priest's  words 
turn  the  coniinun  elements  of  bread  and  wine  into 
the  very  bleeding  Body  of  the  Lonl :  but  we  who 
think  differently  must  acknowledge  tiiat  nobody 
can  charge  him  with  undervaluing  what  i-  offered. 

The  8('|iarated  brother  of  the  sects,  believes  that 
the  prayers  of  himself  and  his  minister  produce 
their  effect  upon  the  recipient  only,  and  make  no 
change  whatever  upon  the  bread  and  wine. 

Thus,  what  is  offered  him,  he  values  at  the 
exact  value  of  bread  and  wine. 

Between  these  two  logical  positions  then — 
Christ  is  present  bodily  in  the  Holy  Eucharist; 
and  Christ  in  the  Holy  Eucharist  is  not  present 
in  any  manner — where  is  the  standing-room  for 
the  Angli<*i\ii  l)plicf  of  a  spiritual  rresence,  -iiice 
the  sacred  Elements,  bread  and  wine,  are  not  spir- 
itual, but  substantial  ^ 

§  107. 

All  agree  that  bread  and  wine  are  laid  upon  the 
altar  or  holy  table,  and  in  each  of  the  tliree  com- 
mimions,  the  celebrant  or  officiating  minister  offers 
solenm  prayers.  When  the  prayers  are  ended, 
two  of  the  three  believe  that  a  change  has  been 
effected  in  the  Elements,  such  at  least  as  to  make 


tt07'.«.  F£ATUB£8  OF  TUX  FAITH.  287 


thete  Elementa  not  to  be  confounded  with  the  ordt* 
nary  unconoeorated  bread  and  wine  held  in  re- 
serve (though  occasionally  a  slovenly  Churchman 
will  let  crumbs  iall  and  be  ashamed  to  stoop  and 
pick  them  up). 

The  third  believet  that  the  pru  ts  have  pro- 
duced no  difference  in  he  nature  ai  value  of  the 
bread  and  wine  placed  on  the  holy  table,  from  that 
which  remaica  in  supply. 

But  what  is  th«~  '^sange  ? 

The  startling,  climacterical  discourse  of  our 
Lord  in  the  Synagogue  of  Capernaum  (John  vi. 
48-60),  and  then  a  year  later,  the  setting  of  the 
torch  to  the  tinder  of  that  Divine  deliverance,  by 
the  institution  of  the  Lord's  Sapper  on  the  eve  of 
His  crucifixion  for  the  world's  redemption,  all 
make  the  Churchman  recoil  from  the  vacuous 
thought,  that  all  this  is  mere  rhetoric;  while 
on  the  other  luuid.  the  alternative  that  the  cjuiver- 
ing  flesh  of  the  Redeemer  is  offered,  repels  him. 

God  guide  our  judgment!  Wo  all  feel  that  it 
is  indeed  the  Body  of  the  Lord — as  the  Saviour 
unmistakably  says  that  it  is.  We  mu»t  pause  for 
a  moment  therefore  to  quiet  our  honest  and  devoat 
perplexity,  which  cannot  L^^  divinely  intended  to 
overwhelm  us. 

Is  it  only  in  religion  that  a  thing  may  be  itself, 


288  SOME  FEATUBE8  OF  THE  FAITH. 

and  yet  very  nuieh  more  than  its  apparent  self? 
Is  there  nothing  in  the  ordinary  experiences  of  life, 
that  affords  anything  like  a  parallel  i  For  our  per- 
plexity will  cease  to  be  devout,  the  moment  it  wears 
the  look  of  stupidity. 

Our  condition  as  we  come  to  the  altar  rails  to 
partake  of  the  Holy  Eucharist,  is  described  in  a 
way  that  well  suits  us,  when  we  are  called  debtors, 
and  debtors  who  have  nought  wherewith  to  pay. 

We  come,  then,  as  very  bankrupts,  when  we 
accept  that  timely  invitation,  "Come  unto  Me  all 
ye  that  labor  and  are  heavy  laden,  and  I  will  give 
you  rest" — rest  from  our  load  of  debt. 

We  seek  the  gracious  benefaction  of  one  who 
can  pay  for  us  to  the  uttermost,  and  we  are  sure 
He  will  be  as  good  as  His  word,  which  He  has 
verily  given  us. 

§168. 

How  like  anxious  waiters  in  the  outer  office  of 
a  princely  capitalist  who  has  bidden  us  apply  to 
him  if  difficulties  should  overtake  us  I 

Our  affairs  and  the  desperateness  of  their  con- 
dition drive  us  to  seek  him,  and  he  does  not  avoid 
us.  He  meets  us  like  a  brother.  Our  story  is  soon 
told;  and  at  onoe  the  faithful  clerik  receives  his 
orders. 


SOME  FEATUBES  OF  THE  FAITH.  289 


The  cheque  book  is  taken  down.  The  intention 
of  our  friend  is  duly  written  on  the  figured  paper, 
the  servitor's  work  is  faithfully  completed.  The 
meagre  slip  of  paper  is  torn  from  its  fellows  by  the 
clerk  and  dutifully  placed  before  his  employer, 
whose  eye  sees  that  all  is  done  scrupulously  accord- 
ing to  his  instructions  by  this  his  officer,  and  then, 
to  the  valueless  bit  of  paper,  he  graciously  sets  his 
signature,  producing  scarcely  any  noticeable  alter- 
ations in  the  appearance  of  the  thing,  and  hands 
the  slip  to  us. 

What!  A  thousand  dollars  over  and  above 
what  we  asked  for,  or  needed!  (God  protect  us 
from  ingratitude,  the  human  failing.)  No  great 
banker  on  earth  but  knows  and  bows  to  that  name. 

With  that  cheque  in  our  trembling  hands  there- 
fore, and  with  a  soul  responding  to  the  splendid 
deed,  we  turn  on  the  one  hand  to  our  Roman 
brother,  to  show  him  our  good  fortune. 

lie  sees,  acknowledges  the  reality  of  the  help, 
and  stands  aghast  at  the  miracle. 

It  is  gold,  gold,  he  says;  there  is  no  manner  of 
doubt  about  it.  Let  it  but  fall,  and  notwithstand- 
ing its  appearance,  the  ring  of  the  true  precious 
metal  will  be  heard — the  copious  tumble  of  mas- 
sive wealth. 

On  the  other  hand  we  turn  to  our  sectarian 


290  SOME  VSAT17BE8  OV  THE  FAITH. 


broiber,  and  show  him  the  cheridied  posMssion  we 
have  received,  and  which  was  given  and  accepted 
with  the  meaning  that  it  should  meet  the  crisis. 

To  him,  as  he  carefully  examines  it,  it  is  a 
very  dear  and  lovable  souvenir,  honoring  to  us 
who  are  permitted  to  retain  it  from  such  a  giver ; 
but  gold  it  is  not,  nor  of  more  real  intrinsic  value 
than  any  of  its  fellows  that  remain  untorn  from 
the  cheque  book :  but  it  bears  a  unique  and  touch- 
ing message  of  sympathy,  for  which  we  ought  to  be 
duly  grateful ;  and  as  human  nature  is  prone  to 
remissness  both  as  to  the  feeling  and  the  expression 
of  gratitude,  we  must  be  sure  at  least  to  show  a 
proper  appreciation  of  this  cordial  and  inspiring 
good  wish  from  such  a  iri&ad.  The  form  it  is 
<jonveyed  in  must  not  of  course  be  pressed  into 
meaning  that  is  more  than  merely  figurative. 

§170. 

It  cannot  be  said  that  the  remarks  of  either 
-add  anything  to  our  joy.  We  know  that  there  has 
been  no  miracle.  We  are  sure  that  there  is  wealth, 
even  beyond  our  great  needs,  in  the  modest-looking 
slip  of  paper  we  have  received;  for  we  have  no 
desire,  it  is  not  in  us,  to  affront  by  doubt  the  real- 
ity of  the  friendship  extended,  or  of  the  power 
claimed. 

We  were  debtors — bankrupts,  who,  having  re- 


SOME  FKATURE8  OF  THE  FAITH.  291 

ceived  a  gracious  and  most  true  invitation  to  make 
the  rMlity  of  our  need  and  distress  the  occasion 
of  a  visit  in  person  to  our  friend,  have  now  the 
peace  and  comfort  of  complete  release  from  im- 
peding ruin. 

And  now,  let  us  return  to  our  pew  in  church. 
We  have  humbly  confessed  our  sins,  made  our 
story  of  debt  and  penury  known. 

The  priest  proceeds  to  the  prayer  of  consecra- 
tion, for  is  he  too,  not  the  clerk  (there  according 
to  the  expressed  will  and  changeless  plan  of  his 
Divine  Master),  of  whom  all  who  prepare  cheques 
of  beneficence  at  their  master's  commands,  are  but 
the  meagre,  types  ? 

The  prayer  of  consecration  is  reverently  and 
solemnly  concluded,  and  then  the  friendship  of  the 
Friend  of  friends  is  tested. 

Every  step  in  that  hallowed  office — which  has 
descended  in  its  iuuuutable  outline  from  the  days 
of  St.  John  in  Ephesus  to  the  present,  every  step 
having  been  taken  in  obedience  to  the  still  unwrit- 
ten word  of  the  Saviour — that  Saviour,  Master, 
Friend,  now  disappointing  no  well-placed  hope, 
signs  the  bare  elements,  and,  without  change,  they 
are  changed,  and  changed  upon  the  word,  and  by 
the  act,  of  Him  who  will  be  our  Judg-  ,  and  whose 


292  SOMK  PKATVHE8  OF  THE  FAITH. 

assured  acceptance  hereafter  of  His  own  sign- 
manual  can  cause  us  no  solicitude. 

§171. 

And  so  our  debts  are  paid.  The  real  sinner's 
account  is  squared  with  his  Qod.  And  our  concep- 
tion and  estimate  of  sins  and  sinners,  right  every- 
where  else,  are  wrong  here;  for  the  world's  dic- 
tum, which  is,  at  its  best,  only  a  strained  echo  of 
conscience,  must  not  be  heard  in  this  presence. 

If  we  have  made  the  world's  ideals,  and  deci- 
sions, our  most  venerated  canons  of  action  in  onr 
daily  life,  it  will  be  a  difficult  matter  for  us  to 
abandon  this  regime  now. 

But  neither  conscience  itself,  nor  conscience 
grotesquely  mirrored  (which  is  the  world),  dare 
any  more  than  ourselves  preside  at  this  tribunal 
before  which  we  now  stand,  and,  thanks  be  to  God 
the  Saviour  and  Redeemer,  stand  acquitted. 

§172. 

It  matters  not  what  the  wit  of  the  whole  world 
can  say,  nor  what  all  the  inexorable  laws  of  eon- 
science  may  demand,  our  experience  shatters  into 
fragments  all  their  stem  and  really  flawless  logic, 
and  every  mouth,  when  not  opened  in  praise  and 
adoration  of  this  sovereign  and  arbitrary  mercy, 
must  be  shut  in  dutiful,  self-obliterating  silence. 


SOME  FEATI7BE8  OF  THE  FAITH.  293 


For  either  we  are  free  and  sinless,  as  Adam  be- 
fore the  fall;  or  God  is  made  a  liar.*  "Thia  is 
My  Body  which  is  given  for  you — Take  eat ;  This 
is  My  Blood  which  is  shed  for  you  and  for  many, 
for  ihe  remMtion  of  »ina.    Drink  ye  all  of  ^t" 

§  173. 

"I  give  them  in  hand,"  says  Hooker,  "an  actual 
possession  of  all  such  saving  grace  as  My  sacri- 
ficed Body  can  yield,  and  as  their  souls  do  pres- 
ently need,  this  is  to  them,  and  in  thorn  ^ly  Body." 

But  this  is  from  the  sido  of  God,  and,  to 
Churchmen  at  least,  admits  of  no  doubt  as  to  its 
fulness  of  favor. 

On  the  side  of  man,  on  the  acquitted  sinner's 
side,  however,  the  world,  being  only  renounced  in 
its  worst  and  most  evil  manifestations,  and  not  re- 
nounced equally  in  its  noblest  ideals  (since  these 
are  in  opposition  to  the  word  and  assurance  of  the 
Judge  of  all  the  earth),  still  fetters  the  feet  of 
even  the  best,  who  will  not  readily  leave  this  goodly 
vessel,  which  has  carried  them  so  long,  to  walk  on 
the  water  with  Christ. 

The  world's  loud  loyalty  to  conscience  now, 
like  that  cf  the  Jews  to  Ctesar  in  order  to  crvsh 
Christ,  echoes  in  the  minds  of  many  faithful  com- 
municants, and  drives  away  that  "peace  which 

•  "He  that  belieTeth  not  Ood.  hath  made  Him  a  liar"  (I. 
John  10). 


294  SOME  FEATUBE8  OF  THE  FAITH. 


passeth  understanding,"  and  which  follows  for- 
giveness and  ought  to  be  theirs. 

If  it  do  not  quite  attain  to  making  them  tacitly 
charge  God  with  unfaithfulnes?,  it  holds  them  in  a 
stupified  thrall,  somewhere  bet  w  een  this  awfulness, 
and  the  too  delightful  alternative  of  forgiveness, 
absolute  and  unreserved. 

Its  influence — the  influence  of  this  world-con- 
science— ^is  inimical  and  tr^endons.  It  makes 
m^  who  go  down  from  the  communion  rails  freed 
by  God's  good  grace,  to  be  as  heavily  chained  cul- 
prits still,  before  its  ideals ;  and  for  all  these — ^her 
diildren,  who  are  thus  unable  to  leave  their  fetters 
— ^the  Church  prays  in  the  words,  "Grant  we  be- 
seech Thee,  Almighty  God,  to  Thy  faithful  people, 
pardon  and  peace :  that  they  may  be  cleansed  from 
all  their  sins,  and  serve  Thee  with  a  quiet  mind, 
through  Jesus  Christ  our  Lord.  Amen." 

Indeterminateness,  indecision  then,  in  the  mind 
of  a  recipient  of  the  Holy  Communion,  as  to  how 
he  stands  before  God,  means,  in  effect,  abandoii- 
ment  of  Christ;  for  the  words  of  the  Saviour  are 
true  here,  "He  that  is  not  with  Me  is  against  Me 
and  the  whole  enerffes  of  our  being  must  be  di- 
rected towards  escape  from  it  by  shipping  our 
eternal  destiny  with  Christ,  in  the  secure  words, 
''6iT«a   ...   shed  for  the  remianon  of  sins." 


sous  rSATUBXS  OF  THB  FAITH.  395 

§  174. 

It  may  be  profitable  to  enter  more  closely  into 
the  feelings  and  fortunes  of  one  who  waits  as  wo 
have  suggested,  to  claim  from  a  powerful  friend  a 
promised  rescue  from  financial  difSealties. 

The  applicant,  in  the  nature  of  the  ease,  must 
have  good  warranty  for  venturing  on  so  bold  a 
course — ^warranty  as  good  as  the  word  and  the 
honor  of  his  friend.    This  buoys  and  stays  him. 

Then  it  was  real  and  dire  need  tiiat  was  gen- 
erously mentioned  as  a  fit  cause  of  appeal ;  and  this 
condition  he  is  painfully  certain  his  circumstances 
amply  satisfy. 

The  aid  offered  as  a  promise,  and  gratefully 
accepted  when  offered,  was  to  be  clearly  adequate,, 
and  no  limits  set. 

( 1 )  If  this  poor  man,  therefore,  receive  less 
than  his  sore  needs  demand,  we  must,  perforce 
and  in  charity,  conclude  that  some  intervening 
disaster  has  crippled  the  resources  of  the  rich 
friaid. 

(2)  If  the  seeker  have  to  return  to  his  diffi- 
culties without  obtaining  any  money  gift  whatever, 
then  the  least  severe  thing  we  can  think,  is  that  the 
reverse  which  has  overtaken  the  wealthy  man's 
bank  account  has  tum^  out  to  be  his  complete 
and  utter  rain. 


296 


80MX  FXATVBX8  OF  THX  VAITH. 


(3)  One  more  supposition  (and  the  hypoth- 
esis is  anything  but  inviting) :  if  the  wealthy  prom- 
iser  evince  the  deliberate  intention,  unurged  by 
any  change  in  his  original  opulent  circumstances, 
to  keep  his  promise  by  pioiu  words  instead  of  pious 
deeds  here,  and  if  this  esteemed  and  trusted  bene- 
factor actually  say  at  last,  "Depart  in  peace,  be 
thou  warmed,"  etc.,  making  no  further  attempt  to 
extend  *hose  things  that  be  needful — this  wretched 
mockery  of  friendship  surely  deserves  the  con- 
tempt of  all  honest-minded  men. 

Thus  it  comes  to  be  seen,  that  we  are  not  per- 
mitted, as  before  we  thought  possible,  to  receive 
the  cheque-like  message  of  sympathy  from  this 
man  of  means,  lest  we  become  abettors  of  his 
hypocrisy. 

We  conclude,  therefore,  that  the  n^ative  inter- 
pretation is  to  be  shunned,  as  under  the  circum- 
stances revolting  and  impious ;  and  certainly  as  no 
improvement  upon  that  against  which  it  is  a  vio- 
lent protest,  namely,  the  carnal  view. 

Of  the  Roman,  or  carnal  view,  we  may  say,  we 
will  not  have  it;  but  of  this  other  we  must  say,  we 
dare  not  have  it,  for  the  Benefactor  in  this  parable 
is  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ,  the  Saviour,  who  has 
given  His  word  to  us,  as  He  has  given  His  life 
for  us ;  and  who  cannot  fail,  as  He  cannot  lie. 


80Ue  FKATUKKS  OF  TUB  FAITH. 


297 


§  175. 

On  the  other  hand,  our  Romanist  brother, 
whose  realistic  mind  has  driven  the  sectarian 
Christian  to  his  dreadful  extremity  of  divergence, 

floos  not,  as  we  have  seen,  undervalue  what  the 
J.ord  so  solemnly,  and,  knowing  our  plight,  so  con- 
<ident!y  oflFers. 

Our  inability,  however,  to  concede  that  any 
cheque,  in  order  to  be  real  and  valid,  must  be  writ- 
ten on  gold,  brings,  us,  according  to  the  discipline 
of  our  sister  the  Church  of  Rome,  into  the  condi- 
tion of  the  damned ;  and  with  the  damned  and  the 
heretical,  faithful  Roman  Catholics  may  not 
mingle.* 

•  Tiw  R«T.  Henry  Kittson,  M.A..  m-tor  of  Cbriat  Church 
Cathedral,  OtUwa.  haa  pointed  out  to  the  writer  that  Dean 
Hook.  In  hiB  Uvea  of  the  Archhithopi  of  Cnntrrbury.  throws  out 
in  a  couple  of  lines,  an  Idea  somewhat  like  that  of  the  cheque 
here  used  as  an  illustration  of  the  AnglUan  poHltlon.  The 
writer,  however,  has  no  acknowledgnic  >"  make  except  to  Mr. 
Kittson,  for  the  courtesy  of  polntlUK  oiu  an  Interesting  coln- 
<  Idence.  so  far  as  it  is  such.  The  lllu.stratlon  which  a  cheque 
may  give  to  the  Church  of  Knglands  interpretation  of  our 
Lord's  words.  "This  is  My  Body."  came  to  the  writer  s  mind 
while  awaiting  a  subscription  to  the  building  fund  of  a  .hurch 
he  was  erecting,  and  which  subscription  was  given  by  cheque. 
The  donor — a  well-known  Churchman  of  Ottawa,  and  a  Sen- 
ator lately  deceased — whose  signature,  not  difficult  for  the  bank- 
ers to  make  out,  though  from  Its  remarkable  paucity  of  letter* 
was  not  so  easy  for  others  to  understand,  by  bis  touch  to  the 
paper,  gave  light  as  well  as  money  to  hia  frloid. 


The  End. 


APPENDIX. 


NOTE  A. 

'See  page  22.] 

"£t  une  preuve  ^ae  je  vous  dia  vrai,  c'est  qne  si,  pour 
rvntAr  k  Dira,  il  ne  devoit  Tom  m  eottter  que  de  soumettre 
votre  raison  ft  da  myBteres  qui  nous  pasBent;  si  la  vie 
chrdtienne  ne  vouh  offroit  point  de'autrea  diflScultds  qne 
eoiainee  contradictiung  apparentes,  qoHI  fmat  croire  sans 
les  pouvoir  comprendre;  si  la  foi  ne  proposoit  point  de 
devoirs  p^nibles  ft  remplir;  si,  pour  changer  de  vie,  il  ne 
lalkdt  p*s  renoncer  aux  passions  les  plus  vives  et  aox 
attachements  les  plus  chers;  si  c'Mcit  ici  une  affaire  pure- 
ment  d'esprit  et  de  croyance,  et  que  le  coeur  et  les  penchants 

Bouffrissent  rien,  vout  n^auries  pins  de  peine  ft  vous 
rendre:  vous  regarderiez  comme  des  insens^s  ceux  qui  met- 
troient  en  balance  des  difflcult^s  de  pure  speculation,  qu'il 
n'en  ooflte  rien  decroire,  avee  une  Mernitft  malheureuse  qui, 
au  fond,  pent  devenir  le  partage  des  incrSdules.  La  faie  ne 
vous  paroit  done  difi9cile  que  parce  qu'elle  r^gle  les  passions, 
et  non  parce  qu'elle  propose  des  mystSres.  C'est  done  la 
saintete  de  ses  maximes  qui  vous  rfivolte,  plutOt  que  I'in- 
comprehensibilite  de  ses  secrets:  vous  fites  done  corr<HBpu; 
mais  vous  n'etes  pas  incrddtde."  (MamUImi,  Tmne  Premier, 
p.  95.  A.  Paris,  1838.) 

NOTES. 
[See  page  24.] 
"No  wonder  that  the  devil,  in  order  to  diffuse  idolatry, 
has  blotted  out  among  all  heathen  nations  the  recognition 
of  Creation.  The  true  doctrine  of  Creation  is  the  proper 
refutation  of  all  idolatory."  (Roos,  cited  by  Stier  and 
quoted  bgr  Alford,  N.  T.  2,  p.  196.) 


SOUK  FKATTBKS  OF  THE  FAITH.  299 

NOTEC. 
(8m  page  43.] 

We  Imt»  thcologiaiM  to  settle  the  metapbjrtict  of  the 

Fall.  Their  busineM  may  be  to  know  how  wt  became  sin- 
ners; our  first,  great,  immediate  bu8ini.>«  is  to  know  how  wt- 
•re  to  eeoee  to  be  so;  hew  we  are  to  be  Mved. 

I^ave  those  who  have  reached  the  land  to  settle  how. 
and  on  what  reef,  the  vessel  struck;  the  question  with  us 
who  cling  to  the  shrouds,  or  are  battling  with  the  surf,  is. 
how  to  gain  yonder  blessed  shore.  In  God's  name,  and  by 
His  help  get  the  raging  fire  put  out;  and  when  the  fiames 
are  qnenelwd,  will  be  the  time  to  consider  how  thqr  were 
kindled.  Tie  the  bleeding  artery,  and  when  life  is  saved, 
find  out  how  it  was  wounded — when  you  'lave  plucked  the 
drowning  man  from  the  water,  and  laid  uim  on  the  bank, 
and  the  color  flushes  again  on  bis  cheek,  and  the  pulse  beats 
at  his  wrist,  and  speech  returns  to  the  blue  and  livid  lips, 
then  may  you  speculate  on  how  he  fell  into  the  flood." 
(Quthrie;  Ooafwl  in  Bzekitl,  p.  89.) 

NOTE  D. 
[See  page  112.] 

"Adam,  you  know,  was  created  in  the  image  and  after 
the  likeness  of  God ;  his  frail  and  imperfect  nature  stamped 
with  a  Divine  seal,  was  supported  and  exalted  by  an  indwel' 
ling  of  Divine  grace. 

Impetuous  passion  did  not  exist  in  him,  except  as  a 
latent  element  and  a  possible  evil ;  ignorance  was  dissipated 
by  the  clear  light  of  the  spirit;  and  reason,  sovereign  over 
every  motion  of  his  soul,  was  simply  subjectec  ;  the  will 
of  God.  Nay,  even  his  body  was  preserved  from  every  way- 
ward appetite  and  affection,  and  was  promised  immortality 
instead  of  dissolution.  Thus  he  was  in  a  supernatural 
state ;  and  had  he  not  sinned,  year  after  year  would  he  have 
advanced  in  merit  and  grace,  and  in  God's  favor,  till  he 
passed  from  Paradise  to  Heaven."  (Newman:  Sermons  to 
MUeed  Congregation;  p.  352-3. ) 


300  fiOMK  FXATTRKS  OF  THE  FAITH. 


NOTEE. 
[8m  |MM|« 

"Sir  Tliomns  More  Hettrth  down  thr  rwlds  betwtTn  u* 
and  the  Church  uf  Kunie  in  the  mutter  of  workH  thw. 
'Uke  a*  we  grant  thetn,  that  no  good  work  of  man  i» 
rewnrdablp  in  henvrn  of  his  own  nature,  but  throuf^h  the 
mere  ffoodm'HH  of  (iod,  that  list  to  Mot  »o  h'nth  a  price  upon 
no  poor  a  thin);:  and  that  thiit  price  God  xettetli  through 
ChtiHt's  paMion,  and  for  that  aUo  that  they  Ih-  his  own 
works  with  u»;  for  goo<l  works  to  Godward  worketh  no 
man,  without  Ood  work  in  him:  and  as  we  .^nint  them  aim, 
that  no  man  may  be  proud  of  bin  wurka,  for  hio  imperfect 
worldng;  and  for  that  in  all  that  man  may  do  he  can  do  no 
good,  but  is  a  servant  unprofitable,  and  doth  but  his  bare 
duty;  we,  I  say,  grant  unto  them  these  things,  so  this  one 
thing  or  twain  do  they  grant  us  again,  that  men  are  bound 
to  work  good  works,  if  they  have  time  and  power:  and  that 
whoso  worketh  in  true  faith  most,  shall  be  most  rewarded : 
but  then  set  they  thereto,  that  all  his  rewards  shall  be  given 
him  for  his  faith  alone,  and  nothin/,'  for  Wis  works  at  alt, 
because  his  faith  is  the  thing,  they  say,  that  forceth  him  tu 
work  wellt' 

"I  sec  l>y  this  of  Sir  Thomas  More,  liow  easy  if  is  for 
men  of  great  capacity  and  judgment  to  mistake  things  writ- 
ten or  spoken,  as  well  on  the  one  side  as  on  another. 

"Their  doctrine,  as  lie  thou};lit.  niaketh  the  works  of 
man  rewardable  in  the  world  to  come  through  the  mere 
goodness  of  God,  whom  it  pleaseth  to  set  so  high  a  price 
upon  so  poor  a  tliiiifr:  ami  ours,  that  a  man  doth  receive 
that  eternal  anil  high  reward  not  for  his  works,  but  for  his 
faith's  sake,  by  which  he  worketh:  whereas  in  truth  our 
d(M'trine  is  no  other  than  that  which  we  have  learned  at  the 
feet  of  Christ;  namely,  that  God  doth  justify  the  believing 
man,  yet  not  for  the  worthiness  of  his  belief,  but  for  his 
worthiness  which  is  believed,  (iod  rew.irdeth  abundantly 
everyone  which  worketh,  yet  not  for  any  meritorious  dig- 
nity, which  is,  or  can  be,  in  the  work,  but  through  Hia 
mere  mercy,  by  whose  commandment  he  worketh. 


MOMK  PK.%TrK»i  OP  TIIR  FAITH. 


301 


"Contrariwiie,  thvir  doctrine  in,  that     pnrr  water  of 

itMt  hath  no  Miivor.  Init  if  it  piiMH  thr<iii}:h  a  i^wti't  |>i|H*,  it 
talceth  a  |ilt>UHant  Hiiiell  of  the  |ii|K>  thrniiKli  which  it  paitH- 
rth :  HO,  although  before  grace  received,  our  works  do  neither 
HntiMfy  nor  merit;  yrt  iift«'r.  thoy  do  lioth  thi-  one  and  the 
other.  Kvery  virtuoiiM  aitiim  hath  then  |>ower  in  mucIi  iwirt 
to  Mtiafjri  that  if  we  ouraelvei  rommit  no  mortal  ain,  no 
heinouM  crime,  whereupon  to  upend  tliin  treamro  of  satisfac- 
tion in  our  own  behalf,  it  turneth  to  t)ic  iM-nclit  of  other 
men's  release,  on  whom  it  Hhall  ph-asc  the  stewurii  of  the 
houM  of  Crod  to  eittow  it."  (Hookf>  Keble'n  Edition- 
Sermon  II.,  p.  060,  u70,  671.) 

•The  Mtrenjrth  of  every  building,  which  ia  of  Ood, 
Hiandeth  not  in  any  man's  arms  or  leffs;  it  is  cmly  in  our 
faith,  as  the  valor  of  Samson  lay  only  in  hiH  hair.  Thia  ia 
the  reason,  why  "p  are  ao  eameatly  called  upon  to  f  Jifp 
ouraclvrs  in  faith. 

"Not  as  if  this  liare  action  of  our  minds,  whereby  we 
believe  the  Ooapel  of  Chriat,  were  able  in  itself,  aa  of  itaelf, 

to  make  us  unconquerable  and  invincible,  like  stones,  which 
abide  in  the  building  forever,  and  fail  not  out. 

"No,  it  is  not  the  worthiness  of  our  believing,  it  is  the 
virtue  of  Him  in  whoj..  ve  believe,  by  which  we  stand  sure, 
as  houses  that  are  builded  upon  a  rock.  He  is  a  wise  man 
which  hath  builded  his  house  upon  a  rock;  for  he  hath 
chosen  a  j;ood  foundation,  and  no  doubt  liis  house  will  stand. 
But  how  shall  it  stand  r  Verily,  by  the  strenfc'th  of  the  rock 
which  beareth  it,  and  by  nothing  e'le.  .  .  .  For  if  thou 
boasteth  thyself  of  thy  faith,  kno.  this,  that  Christ  chose 
His  apostles.  His  apostles  chose  not  Him;  that  Israel  fol- 
lowed not  the  rock,  but  the  rock  followed  Israel ;  and  that 
thou  bearest  not  the  root,  but  the  root  thee.  ,So  that  every 
heart  must  this  think,  and  every  tongue  must  thus  speak, 
'Not  unto  us,  O  Lord,  not  unto  ua,'  nor  unto  anything  which 
is  within  us,  but  unto  thy  name  only,  «)nly  to  thy  name  be- 
longeth  all  the  praise  of  all  tlie  treasures  and  riches  of 
every  temple  which  is  of  (Jod.  This  excludeth  all  boasting 
and  vaunting  of  our  faith."  ( Hooker,  Sermcm  VI.,  p.  857-8  ) 


302 


SOME  FEATITBES  OF  THB  FAITH. 


NOTE  P. 
[See  page  130.] 

"I  deal  not  with  open  and  avowed  vice.  ...  I  come 
among  the  amiabilitieB,  the  noblenesses,  the  stern  and  lofty 
virtues  of  our  social  life.  It  is  there  that  the  warfare 
against  man's  fancied  perfection  must  be  prosecuted,  and 
the  true  nature  of  that  one  principle  of  Christian  excellence 
which  is  yet  to  be  the  light  and  blessedness  of  heaven,  vin- 
dicated against  all  its  counterfeits. 

"It  is  these  virtues  which  the  man  of  the  world  and  the 
philosopher  equally  declare  themselves  unable  to  conciliate 
with  the  uncompromising  denunciations  of  the  gospel.  It 
is  these  in  which  I  find  them  most  amply  justified.  The 
depravity  of  the  world  is  just  its  forgetfulness,  impatience, 
contempt  of  its  God;  the  godless  emeUeneea,  the  unsancti- 
fied  noblenesses  of  man,  are  the  truest,  the  most  awful 
proofs  of  fact. 

"Hiat  the  murderer,  the  adulterer,  the  thief,  should 
disclaim  subjection  to  his  God  is  sad,  but  scarcely  surpris- 
ing; the  depth,  the  universality  of  the  rebellion,  is  seen  in 
the  independence  of  our  very  virtues  upon  God;  in  the  vast 
sphere  of  human  excellence  into  which  God  never  once 
enters;  in  the  amiability  that  loves  all  but  God;  in  the 
self-devotion  that  never  surrendered  one  gratification  for 
the  sake  of  God;  in  the  indomitable  energy  that  never 
wrought  one  persevering  work  for  God;  in  the  enduring 
patience  that  faints  under  no  weight  of  toil  exc^t  the  labor 
of  adoring  and  praising  God. 

"This  it  is,  which  really  demonstrates  the  alienation  of 
the  world  from  its  Maker,  that  its  beat  affections  should 
thus  be  affections  to  all  but  Him;  that  not  the  worst  alone 
or  the  most  degraded,  but  the  best  and  loftiest  natures 
among  us,  should  be  banded  in  this  conspiracy  to  exile  Him 
from  the  world  He  has  made;  that  when  He  thus  'comes  to 
His  own,'  'His  own'  should  'receive  Him  not' ;  that  He  should 
have  to  behold  the  fairest  things  He  has  formed — kindness 
and  gratitude  and  love — embracing  every  object  but  Him- 
self; the  lovelieat  feeling*  He  haa  emplaoted  taking  root, 
and  growing  aod  Moawmiiiig  throui^  tiw  world,  to  bear 


BOMK  FXATUBX8  OF  THX  FAITH. 


303 


fruit  for  all  but  Him."  (Archer  Butler.  Sermona,  Vol.  I., 
p.  140-1.  MMsnilbm  k  Co.) 

NOTE  G. 
[See  page  182.] 

"The  second  vicious  principle  was  the  right  of  com- 
pulsion assumed  by  the  Romish  Church:  a  right,  however, 
contrary  to  the  very  nature  and  spirit  of  religious  society, 
to  the  origin  of  the  Church  itself,  and  to  its  primitive 
maxims.  A  right,  too,  disputed  by  some  of  the  most  illus- 
trious fathers  of  the  Church — by  St.  Ambrose,  St.  Hilary, 
St.  Martin — but  which,  nevertheless,  prevailed  and  became 
an  important  feature  in  its  history. 

"The  right  is  assumed  of  forcing  belief,  if  these  two 
words  can  stand  together,  or  of  punishing  faith  physically, 
of  persecuting  heresy,  that  is  to  say,  a  contempt  for  the 
Intimate  liberty  of  human  thought,  was  an  error  which 
found  its  way  into  the  Romish  Church  before  the  beginning 
of  the  fifth  century,  and  has  in  the  end  cost  her  very  dear." 
(Guizot,  Hittory  of  CivilizatUm  in  Europe,  p.  98.) 

NOTEH. 

[See  page  220.] 
"I  do  not  deny  that  this  aspect  has  been  given  to  the 
Sacrifice  of  Christ.  It  has  been  represented  as  if  the 
majesty  of  Law  demanded  a  victim:  and  so  as  it  glutted 
its  insatiate  thirst,  one  victim  would  do  as  well  as  another 
— the  purer  and  the  more  innocent  the  better.  It  has  been 
exhibited  as  if  Eternal  Love  resolved  in  fury  to  strike,  and 
so  as  He  had  His  blow,  it  mattered  not  whether  it  fell  on 
the  whole  world,  or  on  the  precious  bead  of  His  own 
chosen  Son. 

"Unitarianism  has  represented  the  Scriptural  view  in 
this  way;  or,  rather,  perhaps,  we  should  say,  it  has  been  so 
represented  to  Unitarians — and,  from  a  view  so  horrible,  no 
wonder  if  Unitarianism  has  recoiled. 

"But  it  is  not  our  fault  if  some  blind  defenders  of  the 
truth,  have  converted  the  self-devotion  of  love  into  a  Brah- 
minieal  Sacrifice. 

"If  the  work  o^  redemptioa  be  defended  by  parallels 


304 


so?!  i:  KKATURKS  OF  THE  FAITH. 


drawn  from  the  most  atrocious  records  and  principles  uf 
Heathenism,  let  not  the  fault  be  laid  upon  the  Bible. 

"We  disclaim  that  as  well  as  they. 

"It  malcea  God  a  Caiaphas — it  makes  Him  adopt  the 
words  of  Caiaphas  in  the  sense  of  Caiaphas.It  represents 
Him  in  terms  which  better  describe  the  ungoverned  ra<;e 
of  Saul  missing  his  stroke  at  David,  who  has  offended,  and 
in  disappointed  fury,  dashing  his  javelin  at  his  own  son 
Jonathan."  (F.W.Robertson.  SermotiB,  Fir»t  Seriet,  pp. 
136-7.) 

NOTE  I. 
[See  page  227.] 

"The  Lord's  death  is  the  perfect  revelation  of  the  sin 
of  the  world.  It  is  not  merely  relative  goodness  that  suf- 
fers: still  less  is  it  one  party  laid  low  by  an  opposite  sect; 
He  who  now  suffers  the  death  of  a  malefactor  is  the  incar- 
nate Righteousness  itself  raised  high  above  all  parties. 
This  death  must  therefore  be  described  as  the  consumma- 
tion of  the  world's  unrighteousness. 

"It  is  not  merely  an  isolated  act:  all  the  sin  previously 
developed  in  human  history  reaches,  in  this  act,  its  highest 
culmination. 

"To  so  deep  a  depth  had  history  now  sunk,  that  those 
very  powers  in  Judaism  and  heathenism  whose  province  it 
was  to  embody  and  maintain  righteousness  upon  earth, 
those  spiritual  and  secular  powers  unite  to  crucify  the 
perMHial  Ri^teoumess  itself. 

"It  is  not  <mly  Caiaphas  and  Pilate  who  bring  the  Re- 
deemer to  the  cross:  spiritual  principalities  and  powers  are 
engaged  in  the  work;  on  the  one  hand  unbelieving  .luduism 
the  spirit  of  Pharisaism,  idolizing  itself  in  the  letter  of 
the  law;  and  on  the  other  hand,  spirit-denying  heathenism 
recognizing  itself  in  the  Ceesar  of  Rome  as  a  god  on  earth. 

"Had  Caiaphas  and  Pilate  and  Judas  never  lived,  those 
powers  would  nevertheless  have  brought  Christ  to  the  Cross. 

"The  death  of  the  Lord  Jesus  is,  therefore,  the  perfect 
manifestation  of  the  world's  lin  and  guilt.  But  this  very 
death  which  seems  to  consummate  the  condemnation  and 
perdition  of  the  race,  in  reality  atones  for  the  sin  of  man- 


SOME  raATUBES  OW  THE  FAITH. 


305 


kind;  Golgotha'.  Crow,  which  seems  to  be  set  up  for  all 
history  as  a  sign  of  the  curse,  is  the  symbol  of  salvation, 
the  true  'tree  of  freedom'  for  all  history.  This  is  the  deep- 
est mystery  of  love  displayed  in  the  Atonement."  (M*r- 
teaam,  Ohrittian  Dogmatics,  p.  310,  311.) 

NOTE  J. 
[See  page  241.] 

"It  is  as  impossible  for  man  to  live  as  it  is  for  man  to 
be  redeemed,  except  through  Ticarious  suffo.  in-.  The  an- 
ffuish  of  the  mother  is  the  condition  of  the  child'^  life.  His 
very  being  has  its  roots  in  the  law  of  sacrifice ;  and  from  his 
birth  onwards,  instinctively  this  beconi-s  the  law  which 
rules  his  existence.  _ 

"There  is  no  blessing  which  was  ever  enjoyed  by  man 
which  did  not  come  thronf^  this. 

"There  was  never  a  country  cleared  for  civilization  and 
purified  of  its  swamps  and  forests,  but  the  first  settlers  paid 
the  penalty  of  that  which  their  successors  enjoy.  There 
never  was  a  victory  won,  but  the  conquerors  who  took  pos- 
session of  the  conquest  passed  over  the  bodies  of  the  noblest 
slain,  who  died  that  they  might  win."  (F.  W.  Robertson. 
Bermont,  Fint  Beriet,  p.  139.) 

NOTE  K. 

"Any  person  or  thing  consecrated  to  God,  or  employed 
in  His  service,  is  said  to  be  sanctified.   Thus  particular 
days  appropriated  to  His  service,  the  temple,  its  utensils, 
the  sacrifices,  the  priests,  the  whole  theocratical  people,  are 
called  holy.   Persons  or  things  not  thus  consecrated,  are 
called  profane,  common,  or  unclean.   To  transfer  any  per- 
son or  thing  from  this  latter  class  to  the  former,  is  to  sanc- 
tify him  or  it.   'What  God  hath  cleansed  (or  sanctified), 
that  call  not  thou  common'  (Acts  X.  15).   .   .   •   This  use 
of  the  word  is  specially  frequent  in  application  to  pfrsons 
and  communities.   The  Hebrew  people  were  sanctified  (that 
is.  consecrated)  by  being  selected  from  other  nations  and 
devoted  to  the  service  of  the  true  God.  They  were,  tttere- 


806  SOME  FEATUEES  OF  THE  FAITH. 

fore,  constantly  called  holy.  All  who  joined  them  or  who 
were  intimately  connected  with  them,  became  in  the  same 
sense  holy.    Their  children  were  holy;  so  were  their  wives. 

"  'If  the  first  fruits  be  holy,  the  lump  is  also  holy;  and 
if  the  root  be  holy,  so  are  also  the  branches'  (Rom. 
That  is,  if  the  parents  be  holy,  so  are  also  the  children. 
Anv  child,  the  circumstances  of  whose  birth  secured  it  a 
plate  within  the  pale  of  the  theocracy,  or  commonwealth  of 
Israel,  was,  according  to  the  constant  usage  of  Scripture, 
eaid  to  be  'loly.  In  none  of  these  cases  does  the  word  ex- 
press any  jective  or  inward  change.  A  lamb  consecrated 
as  a  sacriii.r.  and  therefore  holy,  did  not  differ  In  its  nature 
from  any  other  lamb. 

"The  priests  or  people,  holy  in  the  sense  of  set  apart  to 
the  service  of  God,  were,  in  their  inward  state,  the  same  as 
other  men.  Children  born  within  the  theocracy,  and  there- 
fore holy,  were  none  the  less  conceived  in  sin,  and  brought 
forth  in  iniquity.  They  were  by  nature  the  children  of 
wrath,  even  as  others  (Eph.  ii.  3)."  (Hodge.  ExpoaitUm 
of  First  Corinthiana, -p.  116.) 


